Wednesday whimsies

Expose yourself: be a blogger!

The IPKat's April Update post on his intellectual property blogging friends, here, attracted a lot of interest and a good deal of correspondence -- but so far we've heard nothing from any fresh volunteers whom we hope will come along to do some blogging with us.  If you are waiting  to be persuaded or invited, you should know that you've got to be proactive.  So, let's hear from you ...!

Cecilia was absolutely
bowled over by the event ...

A word about #HappyKat.  Yesterday's IPKat seminar, "Copyright + Online Enforcement = Happiness?", was a massive success thanks to the tireless efforts of fellow Kat Eleonora, who conceived and organised it, as well as our hosts, Bristows LLP, who provided full logistical support, refreshments and -- for the first time in an IPKat event -- streaming.  The event has been recorded and, once edited, the recording will be available to all, as will the PowerPoints of the various speakers. We look forward to running further events (an introductory programme on copyright for non-lawyers and lawyers who know nothing at all about copyright has already been mooted), and possibly even a boxing tournament between our friends who provide and host internet services on the one side and our other friends who work for collecting societies on the other ...


The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys in the United Kingdom is going through a "let's be nice to IP academics" phase at the moment, to which end it has launched the initiative which we've cut and pasted below. This Kat hopes that it won't be difficult to encourage CIPA to extend its kindness to academics and students from outside the UK too, since we are living in a fairly borderless IP environment these days.  Anyway, this is what's on offer:

IP Academics and Ph.D. Students in the UK

These directories, set up by CIPA, aim to list academics based in the UK and their Ph.D. students, for the benefits of IP researchers, IP practitioners, UK Government and others. There are two Directories at present: IP academics and Ph.D. students. We hope to add a further Directory listing IP practitioners willing to engage with researchers. In the meantime, if you want to contact a CIPA expert for discussions, let us know and we will try to find someone. Please email mail@cipa.org.uk.

* Directory:   IP Academic  PhD Student  Institution: Surname:

CIPA aims to strengthen links with academic research in IP (particularly UK-based activities). We feel that we could use CIPA's wide professional and practical expertise to help UK academics in their research. We feel that these Directories would be helpful in understanding the state of active IP research in the UK, which could lead to offers of pro bono assistance from CIPA members, increased awareness by the UK IPO, networking opportunities in particular for Ph.D. students, and to other benefits. 

Whilst independently conceived, these Directories are similar to one element of the IP Foresight Forum, developed by the IP and IT Centre at the University of Edinburgh a few years ago, based on an idea of Professor Lionel Bently. CIPA acknowledges with gratitude the support of Professor Bently, University of Edinburgh and, in particular, Professor Charlotte Waelde as we revive this idea.

 To read more about the history of the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) please click here.

We can provide our professional and practical experience to inform, assist, review and contribute to IP research (including research proposals, the conduct of research, and the results of research). We could be a contact point for academics (not only those in law faculties) who want to liaise with IP professionals in private practice and industry who may be able to assist them in developing ideas for research, reviewing research proposals, providing background information, assisting in providing relevant materials and evidence, and providing review resources for research results and papers. We could also assist publication in our CIPA community if wished.

We could also help to teach students from many disciplines (law, science, engineering, business, etc) about the importance of intellectual property. We are prepared to help individual institutions with material and to try to get speakers from our profession.

Around the weblogs. If you have been following the saga of the Samsung v Apple patent litigation in England and Wales, which has been stayed so that Samsung can apply to the European Patent Office to have its patents amended (see earlier Katpost here), there's a small but significant sequel, noted on PatLit here. Elsewhere, Class 46 publishes the latest Joint Statement on Plain Packaging and EU legislation, which you can read in full here. Finally, on IP Tango, Patricia Covarrubia marks the first birthday of Mexico's membership of the Madrid Protocol on international trade mark registration.