IPEC expands to seven new locations across England and Wales
Small claims at the UK’s Intellectual Property Enterprise Court ( IPEC) can now be issued and heard in Business and Property Courts across England and Wales.
In its announcement on Tuesday, November 12, the IPEC said the claims can now be heard in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle in addition to London.
The IPEC is a specialist division of the High Court which provides a streamlined, cheaper way of resolving lower value and less complex IP disputes.
The small claims track hears the most straightforward cases, where less than £10,000 is claimed. Hearings are short and informal with parties frequently unrepresented and the losing party seldom pays the winner’s costs.
As of last month, IPEC small claims may be issued, and documents filed online, in the seven centres outside London.
Appeals from these cases will also be able to be issued and, as far as possible, heard in those courts.
The IPEC’s main focus is mainly on claims relating to copyright, designs, passing off and trademarks.
Earlier this year, WIPR reported on such a ruling by the IPEC on a trademark dispute between London-based hotel Claridge’s and a candle maker.
In his judgement, presiding judge Douglas Campbell found that UK-based retailer Claridge Candles had infringed a trademark belonging to Claridge’s Hotel.
The dispute focused on the word mark ‘Claridge’s’, which is registered in classes 3, 5, 16, 35, 43 and 44 for a range of goods and services including toiletries, retail services, hotel, restaurant, café and bar services and health and spa services.
The court was asked to decide whether the hotel could stop Claridge Candles from selling candles, the labels of which bear the words “Claridge London”.
In his judgment, Campbell said Claridge’s Hotel’s trademark and the Claridge Candles’ applied-for mark were visually and aurally almost identical. It also agreed with Claridge’s Hotel that there was a high degree of conceptual similarity.
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