Region: South Africa

Recently published regulations in South Africa make provision for the registration of GIs that identify agricultural products as originating in South Africa or in a foreign country.  

15 October 2019

With Africa proving to be a particularly lucrative region for brands seeking licensing opportunities, we examine what rights holders need to know about trademark licences from a swathe of nations across the continent.

01 October 2019

In Beiersdorf AG v Koni Multinational Brands (Pty) Ltd, the South African High Court has considered the use by one party of a get-up that was a composite of various get-ups used by another party.

22 May 2019

The people of South Africa took to the polls last week, with the country’s president Cyril Ramaphosa leading the ANC party to victory with its lowest majority ever. We explore what trademark practitioners should expect from the ANC’s next five years.

13 May 2019

Fears over potential phishing attacks were sparked last month when it was revealed that a domain name previously used by South Africa's Companies and Intellectual Property Commission had been purchased by an individual in Mexico.

13 September 2018

Two recent decisions of the South African Supreme Court of Appeal highlight the dangers to trademark owners, from a proof of use perspective, in not setting up their corporate structures properly.

27 July 2018

In a move that brings South Africa a step closer to plain packaging for tobacco products, the Department of Health has invited public comment on the Draft Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill 2018.

29 May 2018

In <em>Crabtree Electrical v Lesco Manufacturing</em>, South Africa’s High Court has found that there could be no passing off when one considered the "whole get-up" used by the parties when marketing their products.

21 May 2018

The Supreme Court of Appeal found no likelihood of confusion between PEPPAMATES and PEPPADEW, highlighting the consequences of adopting a descriptive mark through the use of a phonetic equivalent.

16 May 2018

In part two of our A-Z guide to the anti-counterfeiting framework across Africa, we look at problems and solutions from Nigeria to Zambia.

11 May 2018