IP Australia

US-based mozzarella giant Leprino Foods has succeeded in removing Canadian dairy company Saputo’s ‘Ascend’ trade mark for non-use.

A judge has refused a bid by manufacturer Howden to use an expert report before IP Australia in a dispute accusing rival Minetek of misappropriating confidential information for an industrial fan patent, saying it was “wasteful” when a similar dispute was already before the court.

IP Australia has rejected the patent application of animal-free dairy and protein company Perfect Day, following a challenge by New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra.

IP Australia has rejected the patent application of Scandinavian dairy giant Arla Foods amba, finding its high-protein whey-based yoghurt invention lacked an inventive step.

Nufarm Australia has successfully challenged a herbicide patent application by Dow Agrosciences’ successor on the grounds that the invention – aimed at limiting the worldwide problem of vapor drift – is neither new nor innovative.

Fintech startup Zeller Technologies has taken millennial financial adviser Victoria Devine to court after she succeeded in quashing its application to trade mark the word ‘Zeller’.

Agricultural chemical company Nufarm has appealed a decision giving rival Advanta Seeds extra time to pay a renewal fee for its patent for a hybrid plant cell after correspondence from its lawyers was sent to employees that had left the company and the patent renewal fell through the cracks.

Air-conditioning giant Seeley is appealing a decision by IP Australia shooting down its bid to block a father-son team from registering their ‘Natural Cool Air’ trade mark.

An IP Australia delegate has rejected German drug maker Ever Neuro Pharma’s claim that extensive experimental evidence was needed to prove the usefulness of a Parkinson’s drug developed by UK-based Britannia Pharmaceuticals.

The Full Court has overturned a landmark judgment which found artificial intelligence can be named as an inventor on patent applications, in a decision which brings Australia in line with findings from courts in the UK, US and EU.