The Australian Federal Government has commissioned an expert panel to review current extension arrangements for pharmaceutical patents. Currently, pharmaceutical patents may be extended for up to 5 years beyond the statutory 20 year term only under certain circumstances. The review of the current arrangements will have regard to various aspects including: the availability of competitively priced pharmaceuticals in the Australian …

Christopher Juhasz, Senior Associate Wrays Perth The market for software applications (Apps) for smartphones and other mobile devices is growing exponentially. Apple’s iTunes Store sells thousands of Apps and has monthly sales of over $200 million. Patent applications for new Apps are on the increase. Is obtaining patent protection for a new App a worthwhile investment? WHEN TO PATENT YOUR …

IP Australia has recently issued a consultation paper outlining a proposal to replace the present “innovative step” test for innovation patents with the new “inventive step” test that will apply to standard patents following implementation of the Raising the Bar Act.

The Australian Wednesday, October 3, 2012  Stalled Research ‘needs a boost’ – The Australian October 3 2012.pdf 

Craig Humphris, Senior Associate, Wrays Adelaide David McCarthy, Associate, Wrays Perth Australia is attempting to raise its patentability threshold and specification requirements. Significant amendments have been made to Australia’s patent laws through enactment of the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Raising the Bar) Act 2012. Most provisions will take effect from 15 April 2013.

Dr Penelope Farbey, Associate Wrays Perth The Australian biotech sector has made headlines throughout 2012 with several mergers and acquisitions, regulatory approvals, and multimillion dollar deals recently announced. However, there have been storms on the horizon. In particular, legal developments in the US this year have made several global market-minded Australian biotechs think twice about the patentability of their inventions. …

Nico de Jong, Lawyer Wrays Perth The Internet has become a major arena for advertising. With more than 2 billion users and approximately one third of the world’s population using the internet, the amount of information it holds is increasing exponentially. To stand out amongst the crowd, vendors have developed new and devious ways to attract consumers to their products …

Christopher Juhasz, Senior Associate Wrays Perth You can’t do that…can you? You can and they have! In some areas of patent law, you may find certain things surprising, controversial and some say shouldn’t exist. Things like patent protection for new software applications or “apps” for smartphones and other mobile devices that innovators such as Apple, Inc are obtaining. For example, …

What is your area of practice and how long have you been practising? I advise and represent clients in relation to all aspects of brand protection and enforcement, including copyright, trade mark and designs law, protection of confidential information, domain name disputes, passing off and consumer law. I also assist clients in conducting advertising, website and product labelling reviews, and …

Joe Seisdedos, Senior Associate, Patent Attorney Wrays Sydney Last Friday, US time, a jury in a San Jose, California courtroom awarded Apple damages of close to US$1.05 billion, finding that Samsung had infringed a series of patents owned by Apple.