EU Council approves Regulation on Compulsory Licensing in Crisis Situations
The European Union is strengthening its emergency response capacity with the adoption of a new regulation that allows compulsory licenses to be granted to ensure access to essential technologies and products in crisis situations.
The Data Act comes into play: keys to a regulatory patchwork that businesses cannot ignore
The «Regulation on harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data» (EU) 2023/2854 (“Data Act”) becomes applicable on September 12, 2025 and redefines data access, sharing, and portability in the EU.
The memory of Pablo Escobar casts a shadow over Europe: EU trademarks as a reflection of moral principles
A recent judgment of the General Court of the European Union sheds light on the interpretation and application of the concepts of public policy and morality resulting from a trademark application for “Pablo Escobar”.
The Supreme Court confirms that a third party may not use the ZARA trademark
The Supreme Court has confirmed that the use of another’s trademark to identify the prize in an advertising campaign constitutes an act of trademark infringement and ordered the infringer to pay compensation for damages.
Managing IP names Garrigues best copyright (Spain) and trademark disputes (Portugal) firm
The partner João Miranda de Sousa was named Portugal Practitioner of the Year.
Spain: New Regulation of the Intellectual Property Registry giving preference to electronic registration of works approved
Although the registration of a work in a register does not attribute copyright thereto, doing so can be a safeguard against possible infringements.
COVID-19: Review of the year that changed everything and trends for 2021
2020 has been a year like no other. The world health emergency caused by the spread of COVID-19 and the resulting declaration of a state of emergency (lockdown) in Spain in March 2020 brought an unprecedented whirl of legislative activity. Companies have now been placed in an uncertain scenario where decision-making is the key to the future survival of their businesses. Over these months the Garrigues Special COVID-19 team have tried to provide answers to many of the questions that have arisen in the new context. Now that this traumatic 2020 is drawing to an end, we review and look back on the main legal matters of the year, from every angle of business law, while looking towards 2021 and picking out the most important trends to watch in the new year.
