Whose Patent is It Anyway?: The Ongoing Legal Legacy Between Samsung and Apple

Using a quote that he attributes to Pablo Picasso, the late Steve Jobs stated in a 1994 interview that “good artists copy, great artists steal.” It seems somewhat ironic that Apple Inc., the company he co-founded, now finds itself in an entrenched legal battle with Samsung over a number of alleged patent and trademark infringements. The twist? […]

RIM’s Battle for Information Privacy, Market Share, and its Reputation

Robert Dewald is a J.D. Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School  Canadian telecommunications giant Research in Motion (RIM), which manufacturers the popular BlackBerry, has reportedly offered information and tools to assist India’s government in monitoring encrypted emails and messaging services (Reuters).  India, which had threatened to shut down the BlackBerry service, is the latest country to […]

Patentability of Computer Programs in Europe

Robert Dewald is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School On May 12, 2010 the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) responded to several questions posed by the President of the EPO, Ms Alison Brimelow, regarding the patentability of computer programs in Europe.  The resounding answer to these questions, provided […]

Wikipedia references increase in U.S. patents

George Nathanael is a JD student at Osgoode Hall Law School. Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia that is open for editing to the general public, with its 14 million articles in over 260 languages, continues to be a life-saver for students around the world. It seems like not so long ago when the dominant mentality […]

Manchester Manifesto questions ‘Ownership of Science’: A Renaissance or Fantasy?

Nirav Bhatt is an LLM candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. In what could be seen as a strange or rather surprising move, a distinguished group of academicians, the majority of which are based at the University of Manchester, have issued something called the Manchester Manifesto. The Manifesto Group brings together international experts from relevant disciplines […]

Standard of Proof in Determining Accessibility of Online Prior Art

Alex Gloor is a JD Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School A recent decision regarding a UK patent application by Ranger Services Ltd raised an interesting issue regarding the accessibility of online documents for prior art searches. As was first discussed on the IPKat blog, the specific question for discussion is the appropriate standard of […]

i4i Inc. vs. the Software Giant: success story and advice from the underdog

Nathan Fan is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. When Toronto-based i4i Inc. suspected their software patent had been infringed by Microsoft Corp., they rallied their resources and launched a lawsuit against the software giant in March 2007.  i4i’s patent was granted in 1998 for their XML software which allowed users to manage large amounts […]

Bangkok to Barcelona: Uncertainties loom large over the issues of sharing green technology for environmental protection

Nirav Bhatt is an LLM Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. From 2-6 November 2009, the meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group for the ongoing negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol to enhance international climate change cooperation took place in Barcelona, Spain. The Barcelona talks […]

IP Osgoode Speaks: Justice Marshall Rothstein on Business Method Patents

Nirav Bhatt is an LLM Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. Last Friday, IP Osgoode hosted a guest lecture by Justice Marshall Rothstein of the Supreme Court of Canada as part of IP Osgoode’s speaker series.  He discussed subject matter patentability, business method patents and possible approaches that a Canadian court might take in deciding […]

The 2008 Berkeley Patent Survey

Brian Chau is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. Given the essential role that entrepreneurs play in driving the economy, there is no question that the creation of patent laws must take into account the protection of their interests. From a small business perspective, patents play a large role not only in helping protect their inventions […]