From the 1 October 2007, the UK Intellectual Property Office will no longer examine trade mark applications on relative grounds. The onus will be on proprietors of potentially conflicting marks to object to the mark.
ECJ Rules That National Courts are Free to Decide Whether or Not to Apply TRIPs
The Portuguese Supremo Tribunal de Justica, in Merck Genéricos - Produtos Farmacêuticos Ldª v Merck & Co. Inc. and Merck Sharp & Dohme Ld, referred two questions to the European Court of Justice....
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As mentioned in a previous alert, group health plans will be subject to new claims and appeals requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), signed into law on March 23, 2010, as modified by the Health Care and Education Affordability Act of 2010 ("Reconciliation Bill" and combined, "Health Care Act").
In addition to extending health care coverage to millions, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is also focused on improving the national health care workforce.
On July 9, 2010, the Court of Appeals of Texas issued a noteworthy opinion that may jeopardize the enforceability of certain "covenants not to compete" in the State of Texas, as applied specifically to physicians.
Health care providers have long struggled with the issue of how to deal with the discovery that they have been involved in violations of the Stark law.
The 36 Month Rule again has taken center stage as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently proposed new regulations governing ownership changes in the home health industry.
As of August 9, 2010, the NHPD will no longer accept a product
licence application (PLA) referring to ingredients that are not
listed in the Natural Health Products Ingredient Database (NHPID)
or are listed but the use and/or source of the ingredient is
different from that listed in the NHPI.
Citing the growing complexities of collaborations between investigators and the private sector, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has proposed new rules for Financial Conflicts of Interest (FCOI).
On August 23, 2010, Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit challenging the new Guidelines for Human Stem Cell Research, which provided for federal funding of human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research.
On July 2, 2010, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the proposed changes to the Medicare Outpatient Hospital Prospective Payment System (OPPS) for Calendar Year (CY) 2011.
New Horizontal Merger Guidelines recently released by the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice emphasize the competitive effects of potential alignment transactions and place a premium on internal planning materials.
