Darren Thorne, Member, Refugee Appeal Division, at the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada in Toronto, and Andrew J. Brouwer, Senior Counsel, Refugee Law Office, at Legal Aid Ontario in Toronto were appointed Judges of the Federal Court. Appointments were also made today to the courts in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec.
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Appointments
Danielle Ferron, Partner at Langlois Lawyers LLP in Montréal, was appointed a Judge of the Federal Court. Appointments were also made today in British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario, and the Tax Court.
Trademark Amendments
Several amendments to the Trademarks Act and accompanying regulations are coming into force on April 1, 2025. To the Act, the changes include challenges to prohibited marks, limits on relief if there has been no use by the trademark owner, and changes to the discretion of the Federal Court on appeals from the registrar. The amendments to the regulations are directed to cost awards, confidentiality, and case management at the TMOB.
IPH
Australian-based intellectual property services group, IPH Limited, announced it is acquiring Bereskin & Parr and combining it with Smart & Biggar. It acquired Smart & Biggar in October 2022, and had also acquired Ridout & Maybee in September 2023 and Robic in November 2023.
Federal Court of Appeal
The Federal Court of Appeal has published an updated Consolidated Practice Direction along with an accompanying Notice. This updates the 2023 practice direction. Updates were made to the filing of confidential materials, requests for virtual/hybrid hearings, and the discussion of condensed books/day books/compendia.
Patent Term Adjustment
Proposed amendments to the Patent Rules were published in the Canada Gazette for consultation to implement patent term adjustment by January 2025. Term may be added if the issue date is more than 5 years from the filing/national entry date, or 3 years from requesting examination, whichever is later, particularly time attributable to the patent applicant. Several miscellaneous amendments are also proposed. Continue reading Patent Term Adjustment
Appointments
Yesterday, Michael Battista, Founding Counsel at Battista Migration Law Group in Toronto, was appointed a Judge of the Federal Court and Catharine Moore, Senior General Counsel at the Department of Justice Canada in Ottawa, was appointed an associate judge of the Federal Court. Appointments were also made to the courts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, and the Tax Court.
Book
There is a new book, “The Regulation of Drugs in Canada“, discussing the Food and Drugs Act, including sections on intellectual property and the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations from authors currently with Health Canada Legal Services of the DOJ. Continue reading Book
CIPO Waiver
As mentioned last week, CIPO waived underpayments on $50 small entity fees which should have been increased under the Service Fee Act. Corresponding Rules Amending the Patent Rules amend s3 and add s139.1 to allow the Commissioner to waive payments of fee differences in certain circumstances, are now available.
CIPO Waiver
CIPO has issued a practice notice waiving the requirement to pay difference between the amounts paid for certain $50 small entity maintenance fees up to today and the amount actually required as increased by the Service Fee Act because of incorrect information posted by CIPO. Accompanying amendments to the Patent Rules that came into force earlier this week address situations where fees are paid incorrectly as a result of erroneous information provided by the Commissioner of Patents.