Holding DOCAs upheld by the High Court
Overview The High Court of Australia has, by majority decision in the recent case of Mighty River International Limited v Hughes & Ors[1] (Mighty River), held that a ‘holding DOCA’ whose main object is to extend the time for the administrators to conduct further investigations before presenting a proposal to the creditors, is valid under […]
Highlights of the new innovation policy
The Top Five Ideas That Will Fuel Malcolm Turnbull’s ‘Ideas Boom’ and How You Can Take Advantage of Them With a lot of things still up in the air, it is going to take some time for the Federal Government’s newly announced innovation policy reforms to materialise on the ground. However, there are still things […]
Car advertising backfires
Highlighting the superiority of your product or service compared to a competitor’s equivalent can be a very effective form of advertising, particularly if done in a clever or humorous way – Apple’s campaign aimed at Microsoft is a good example: Apple campaign on Youtube. Also comparative advertising, if done properly, can enable consumers to make better […]
Licensed trade marks – use them or lose them
A recent case highlights some important issues for owners of registered trade marks who license the marks to third parties. In particular, the case impresses the need for owners to have and to exercise rights to monitor and control the licensee’s use of the mark. Failure to do this over a period of time can, […]
Posting false information on your blog can be defamatory
Blogs encourage and facilitate millions of people to publish their views on any topic they choose to readers around the world. However, many bloggers (and people who post comments on blogs) do not realise that they are subject to the same laws as mainstream media organisations are regarding the publication of false and damaging information, […]
The dangers of posting ‘intimate’ photographs without consent
Posting intimate or explicit photographs of your ex-partner on the Internet can be unlawful and may expose you to substantial financial liability, as highlighted by a recent decision of the Supreme Court of Western Australia.[1] In that case, the “jilted ex-lover” published on his Facebook page several sexually-explicit images and videos of his former partner, […]
Patents for software and business methods – recent developments
New business ventures often rely upon or arise from an inventive method for doing business or a new software program, or both. The viability and value of the business may depend on whether it can prevent competitors from using or emulating that method or software. Patents provide the strongest protection for inventions, but not all […]
Misleading conduct in the context of a franchise agreement
Franchisors are obliged to provide prospective franchisees with certain information before entering into an agreement. The new Franchising Code of Conduct (the Code), which will take effect on 1 January 2015, makes some changes to the disclosure requirements (including in relation to online sales), but the information covered remains largely the same, dealing with issues […]