Wednesday 29 October 2014

Spurr vs New Matilda: landmark case considers interplay between right to privacy, confidentiality and the public interest


A landmark privacy case is currently being heard in the Federal Court involving a university professor, an online news site and the publication of controversial leaked emails.  The outcome of this case is likely to have significant implications for the media and public generally.

Tuesday 21 October 2014

New EU practice for black and white trade marks


The European Union (EU) has recently introduced a new practice for how black and white trade marks are dealt with.  The new practice affects all trade mark applications and registrations for Community Trade Marks and national trade marks in EU Member States, except for Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, Norway and Sweden.

Monday 20 October 2014

‘Just browsing’ - US Court finds online customer not bound by browsewrap licence


A recent US decision, which found that the terms of a ‘browsewrap’ licence were not enforceable against the user of a prominent online sales portal, is a timely reminder that the law of contract still applies to online transactions.

In Nguyen v Barnes & Noble Inc. 2014 WL 405649 (9th Cir. Aug. 18, 2014) the Ninth Circuit Court refused to enforce the browsewrap terms of Barnes & Noble (B&N), a popular online books and gifts retailer.

Tuesday 7 October 2014

Harper Review Draft Report: An appetite for reform

 

The much anticipated draft report of the Competition Policy Review Panel was released last week with the Panel making over 50 draft recommendations.  With over 300 submissions considered and over 300 pages making up the draft report, one thing is clear from the broad array of issues addressed: Australia’s competition policy is in need of a makeover.

The Panel took seriously its mandate to undertake a ‘root and branch’ review of competition law.  It considered sectors of the economy that are currently exempt from competition law and made specific recommendations about them.  The panel also made overall recommendations relating to competition law generally and the agencies that administer competition law.