Ashley Moniz is the Managing Editor of the IPilogue and the Assistant Director of IP Osgoode.

Ģż

On October 15, 2008, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto, IP Osgoode was officially launched. Known as Osgoode Hall Law Schoolā€™s Intellectual Property Law and Technology Program, Prof. Pina Dā€™Agostino set out to create a program that would lead IP law discourse, foster a vibrant community whose members are welcome to share broad perspectives, and diversify the IP innovation ecosystem. Now, 13 years later, IP Osgoode and the IP Innovation Clinic are still forging new paths and relationships in the IP community.

Here are a few noteworthy accomplishments from the past year:

IP Osgoode

• Runners-Up at the Oxford IP Moot: in March 2021, for the first time. Under Prof. Dā€™Agostino and Prof. David Vaverā€™s academic supervision and expert coaching from lawyers at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP and Deeth Williams Wall LLP, our team placed second after an incredible showing and very close competition, winning the Kirkland & Ellis Runner-Up Prize for Oral Proceedings in the process.
• Leading Legal Disruption Published: in May 2021, . The book, titled Leading Legal Disruption: Artificial Intelligence and a Toolkit for Lawyers and the Law, was co-edited by Dr. Aviv Gaon of IDC Herzliya and Carole Piovesan of INQ Law.
• Two Bracing for Impact Webinars: IP Osgoode collaborated with the Harry Radzyner Law School at the IDC Herzliya and Microsoft Canada to present two new webinars in our Bracing for Impact Event Series: ā€œā€ in and ā€œā€ in , the latter being also in collaboration with Alectraā€™s GRE&T Centre. The webinars featured speakers from around the world and drew in almost 250 spectators between them.
• First Virtual Trademark Hearing: thanks to the Honourable Justice Michael Manson of the Federal Court of Canada, over 70 Osgoode students and faculty members virtually attended the .
• IPilogueā€™s Return to Daily Publishing: under a new structure, the has returned to publishing daily blog articles written by our dedicated team of IPilogue Writers. Almost 270 articles have been published over the past year alone, more than 120 more than the previous year. We continue to receive and publish guest submissions from students, academics, lawyers, and members of our as well.

IP Innovation Clinic

• IP Innovation ChatBot Launched: The IP Innovation Clinic officially launched its through a . Developed with assistance and support from Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP, CIPO, and ISED Canada, the AI-backed ChatBot provides accurate and reliable IP law information for free on our website. Thanks to further funding from ISED through the National IP Strategy, we look forward to continuing to expand the breadth of the ChatBotā€™s impact and better reach and assist members of underrepresented communities in the IP Innovation ecosystem.
• Mitacs-funded Business Strategy Internships: in March 2021, . The IP Innovation Clinic placed 3 Clinic Fellows with businesses pivoting their operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prof. Dā€™Agostino was also featured in the marking the official launch of the program.
• Clinic Clients Secured Millions in Funding: two IP Innovation Clinic clients leveraged IP information from our Clinic Fellows to massive expansions of their business. to develop their drone technology and for their sustainable clothing brand.
• First LPP Candidate: during the Winter 2021 Term, under the supervision of IP Osgoode alumnus Reshika Dhir of Bereskin & Parr LLP, the IP Innovation Clinic . We look forward to welcoming two new LPP candidates in Winter 2022.
• The IP Lunch Club Continues: for the second year in a row, and in collaboration with the City of Barrie Sandbox Centre, Prof. Dā€™Agostinoā€™s Directed Reading: IP Innovation Program students presented , educating local entrepreneurs and innovators about registering and commercializing IP rights. Many attendees from these webinars go on to engage the IP Innovation Clinic for IP and commercialization assistance.

As always, we are grateful to all of the students, faculty, partners, and our Advisory Board for making this past year as great a success as it was. None of the above accomplishments would have happened if not for their passion, dedication, and hard work. As we welcome new students and continue to seek out more involvement, we look forward to another wonderful year and welcome new students and partnerships who can help us grow to even greater heights.

The post Happy 13th Birthday IP Osgoode! appeared first on IPOsgoode.

Students enrolled in the moot have the distinct opportunity to be coached by lawyers at Cassels, Brock & Blackwell LLP and former Osgoode team members, receive guidance from faculty advisors who founded the moot, and, if selected for the oral rounds, practice in front of judges on IP Osgoode's Advisory Board.Ģż

We thank all interested applicants and continue to look forward to another great year in the Oxford Moot.

***

To try out, please refer to the fact problem attached to this email. Each entrant must prepareĢżskeleton arguments of no more than 3 double-spaced pagesĢż(excluding a table of authorities)Ģżaddressing the copyright issue on behalf of the appellantĢżinĢż. You will then be required to present a 10-minute oral argument, which will include responding to questions from the tryout judges.

Please contact Ashley Moniz (amoniz@osgoode.yorku.ca)Ģżas soon as possible to indicate your interest and receive further instructions.ĢżPlease include the following email subject heading in all communications: ā€œOxford Moot 2021/22 Tryouts ā€“ [FIRST & LAST NAME]ā€.

Following the tryouts, the Moots & Skills Program Director will contact successful applicants directly.

Please note that Rule 5.1(e) of the Academic Rules prohibits enrollment in more than one competitive lawyering simulation competition in any single academic year.

The team will be mentored by Prof. David Vaver and Prof. Pina Dā€™Agostino and coached by a select team of IP practitioners on appellate advocacy. For their participation, students receive 3 graded credits for preparing their written arguments and 2 credits for the oral rounds if they advance. All credits are allocated to the Winter Term.

If you have any further questions, require special accommodations, or need more information, please email Ashley directly at amoniz@osgoode.yorku.ca.

Thank you for your interest, we look forward to another exciting year with the Oxford IP Moot!

The post Oxford IP Moot Tryouts EXTENDED appeared first on IPOsgoode.

To try out, please refer to the fact problem attached to this email. Each entrant must prepare skeleton arguments of no more than 3 double-spaced pages (excluding a table of authorities) addressing the copyright issue on behalf of the appellant in . You will then be required to present a 10-minute oral argument, which will include responding to questions from the tryout judges.

Please contact Ashley Moniz (amoniz@osgoode.yorku.ca) by Monday to indicate your interest and availability via Zoom between 1pm and 5pm on October 5^th and 7^th. Following this, you will have until October 4^th at 3pm to send us your skeleton arguments. Please include the following email subject heading in all communications: ā€œOxford Moot 2021/22 Tryouts ā€“ [FIRST & LAST NAME]ā€.

Following the tryouts, the Moots & Skills Program Director will contact successful applicants directly.

Please note that Rule 5.1(e) of the Academic Rules prohibits enrollment in more than one competitive lawyering simulation competition in any single academic year.

The team will be mentored by Prof. David Vaver and Prof. Pina Dā€™Agostino and coached by a select team of IP practitioners on appellate advocacy. For their participation, students receive 3 graded credits for preparing their written arguments and 2 credits for the oral rounds if they advance. All credits are allocated to the Winter Term.

If you have any further questions, require special accommodations, or need more information, please email Ashley directly at amoniz@osgoode.yorku.ca.

Thank you for your interest, we look forward to another exciting year with the Oxford IP Moot!

The post REMINDER: Oxford IP Moot Tryouts are Next Week! appeared first on IPOsgoode.

To try out, please refer to . Each entrant must prepare skeleton arguments of no more than 3 double-spaced pages (excluding a table of authorities) addressing the copyright issue. You will then be required to present a 10-minute oral argument, which will include responding to questions from the tryout judges.

Update 22 September 2021: For the tryout, prepare your skeleton arguments and oral submissions as if you are representing the appellant.

Please contact Ashley Moniz (amoniz@osgoode.yorku.ca) as soon as possible to indicate your interest and availability via Zoom between 1pm and 5pm on October 5^th and 7^th. Following this, you will have until October 4 at 3pm to send us your skeleton arguments. Please include the following email subject heading in all communications: ā€œOxford Moot 2021 Tryouts ā€“ [FIRST & LAST NAME]ā€.

The Moots & Skills Program Director will contact successful applicants directly.

Please note that Rule 5.1(e) of the Academic Rules prohibits enrollment in more than one competitive lawyering simulation competition in any single academic year.

The team will be mentored by Prof. David Vaver and Prof. Pina Dā€™Agostino and coached by a select team of IP practitioners on appellate advocacy. Students will receive 3 graded credits for their written arguments and 2 credits for their oral arguments if they advance. All credits are allocated to the Winter Term.

If you have any further questions, require special accommodations, or need more information, please email me directly at amoniz@osgoode.yorku.ca.

We look forward to another exciting year with the Oxford Moot!

The post CALL FOR TRYOUTS - 2021/22 Oxford International IP Law Moot Team appeared first on IPOsgoode.

It is our great pleasure to provide you all with a sneak preview of what we have planned for the 2021-2022 academic year and encourage you to participate.

IPilogue

Our is one of Canadaā€™s leading IP Blogs with an enthusiastic international following. To date, we have published over 2,600 original posts and 1,400 comments.

The number of visitors to our website and our weekly newsletter () readership continue to grow exponentially and span the globe. Our diverse continued to blog throughout the summer and constitutes to be an important part of IP °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s team and vision of fostering diverse views on intellectual property and technology matters. In order to keep abreast of the latest in IP and technology in Canada and around the world, and to learn more about IP °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s events and activities, please to the IPIGRAM and follow us on , , and .

We are for this academic year. If you are interested in joining the IPilogue Team, please send your cover letter, CV, law school transcripts, and a writing sample to iposgoode@osgoode.yorku.ca by the end of the day today.

We will also continue to accept submissions on a guest basis. For more information about submitting articles to the IPilogue, click .

IP Innovation Clinic

Now in its eleventh year of operation, the IP Innovation Clinic continues to complement °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s rich history of clinical offerings by providing students with an opportunity to gain hands-on, practical experience while learning about some common early-stage IP and business-related issues facing under-resourced inventors, entrepreneurs, and start-up companies.

To this end, we our AI-powered , a free online service offering IP law information to users and further empowering creators with the tools to protect their IP. We look forward to continuing to develop the IP Innovation ChatBot by expanding its knowledge base and making it more accessible, but in the meantime, we encourage you to ask our as many questions as possible. The more questions it receives, the better it becomes at answering them. You can learn more about it by watching the recording of our launch event .

The continues to expand our client base and provide our students with a valuable and unique experiential learning opportunity. We are currently for the 2021-2022 academic term. If you are interested, please send your completed application to iposgoode@osgoode.yorku.ca by the end of the day today.

Open Research Assistant Positions

Prof. Pina Dā€™Agostino and Prof. David Vaver are hiring , primarily for assistance in copyright law. If you are interested, please send a completed application to iposgoode@osgoode.yorku.ca by September 10, 2021.

Oxford International Intellectual Property Law Moot & USPTO National Patent Application Drafting Competition

Following from the momentum of our , we will soon host tryouts for this yearā€™s competition, as well as the USPTO National Patent Application Drafting Competition. Look out for our emails and social media posts to learn about how you can get involved in either competition.

IP Intensive

The IP Intensive is a unique program that gives students practical, experiential education in a workplace setting for an entire term in lieu of being in the classroom. Our students gain valuable practical experience which will assist them in obtaining employment after law school, and some of our studentsā€™ research in the program has been published in the Intellectual Property Journal (IPJ).

Each year we build upon what we accomplished in previous years in the and offer our students an even more enriched and engaging experience. For the Fall 2021 term, we are proud to have partnered with two new placement organizations: Canadian Heritage (International Trade Branch) and Xanadu Quantum Technologies. We are pleased to welcome our returning placement organizations: Alectra Utilities, AstraZeneca Canada Inc., the Bergeron Entrepreneurs & Science and Technology (BEST) Lab, Canadian Heritage (Broadcast, Copyright and Creative Marketplace Branch), CBC, Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO), SOCAN, The Globe and Mail, TEVA Canada Limited, TVO, and ventureLAB.

Professor will be the Director of the IP Intensive program this year. Throughout the term, he will meet with the students to discuss topics relating to intellectual property law, to share their experiences in the work environment, and to participate in a cross-pollination of ideas. The students will also blog on the IPilogue and maintain a reflective journal about their internship experiences. The students will be responsible for leading seminar presentations during the last week of November, and ultimately submitting a major research paper.

The IP Intensive Program kicks off with two weeks of class seminars featuring experts from the IP community. The seminars cover a wide variety of topics, from ā€œCollective Copyright Administrationā€ to ā€œIntellectual Property Reform Processā€, and from ā€œIP Litigation & Remediesā€ to ā€œDigital Content Platforms & Broadcasting Industryā€, just to name a few. Some of our experts speaking include members of the judiciary, officials from the Government of Canada, Canadian and U.S. IP litigation experts, in-house counsel, top executives from a broad range of industries, and practitioners from major Canadian law firms.

Olha Senyshynā€™s Departure and Ashley Monizā€™s Welcome

This Fall, we bid a bittersweet farewell to IP °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s Assistant Director, Olha Senyshyn. Olha has been a valuable member of the IP Osgoode team for the past two years. We will miss her very much and wish her all the best in her future endeavours.

We are pleased to share that Ashley Moniz, who joined us this past January, will continue in his role as Assistant Director and succeed Olha. We look forward to continue to work with Ashley as he has already proven to be wonderful addition to our team.

ā€œBracing for Impact: Webinar Seriesā€ continues & ā€œIP Osgoode Speaks Seriesā€ Returns

Building on the success of our signature and in our webinar series over the past year, we plan to continue to use our Bracing for Impact: Webinar Series to maintain the dialogue among academic scholars, practitioners, and industry leaders from Canada and around the world, including Israel and the EU. The series of events explores critical issues in emerging technologies, data policy and governance strategies, with a focus on AI, blockchain, privacy, disruptive technology and tech innovation and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In collaboration with the Harry Radzyner Law School at the IDC Herzliya in Israel and Microsoft Canada, we have so far hosted 3 events in our Bracing for Impact Webinar Series: ā€œā€ (22 June 2020), ā€œā€ (1 December 2020), and ā€œā€ (28 June 2021), the latter webinar was also hosted in collaboration with Alectra Inc.ā€™s GRE&T Centre and featured the newly-minted Ontario Minister of the Environment, Conservation & Parks, David Piccini. Each webinar took place virtually over Microsoft Teams in the format of a panel discussion featuring scholars from across North America, Europe, and Israel.

You can read more about each of our past events and watch recordings of each webinar on our . We look forward to launching our new Bracing for Impact website very soon, so stay tuned for that!

We also plan to revive our IP Osgoode Speaks Series. Since 2008, weā€™ve hosted 29 IP Osgoode Speaks lectures with guests from industry, academia, and the judiciary (including the Supreme Court of Canada) from Canada and around the world. We hope to have even more distinguished speakers join us this year.

Please stay tuned for more details on upcoming events by visiting our Ģżand subscribing to our weekly e-Newsletter, the .Ģż

Our Writing Competitions

Gowling WLG Best Blog in IP Law & Technology Prize

Each year, through the sponsorship of Gowling WLG, four prizes are awarded to full-time Osgoode students. The recipients for the 2020-2021 academic year were on the IP Osgoode website. Eligibility for the opens today. All submissions by Osgoode JD students between now and the end of the Winter term will be considered for the prize.

Canadaā€™s IP Writing Challenge

IP Osgoode, together with the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC), runs to further enhance intellectual property public policy research and discussion. This competition is open to three categories of entrants: JD students, LLM and PhD students, and practitioners.

The submission deadline is July 1 every year. This year, we received a wide range of entries from a broad spectrum of backgrounds and institutions across Canada.Ģż We thank all those who participated in the Writing Challenge. We are grateful to Dan Bereskin, Professor Ikechi Mgbeoji and Justice Roger Hughes for agreeing to judge the articles again this year. Stay tuned, as we will announce the Challenge winners in late October and open our next competition early next year, among various other initiatives.

A community is only as vibrant as its contributors. Given the challenges of the ongoing pandemic, we continue to confront complex and challenging debates in intellectual property and related areas of technology.ĢżPlease share with us your ideas to enrich our program and to do our part to make a difference during these unprecedented times. Let us know if you would like to get more involved or if you would like to announce any IP & tech-related research projects or activities.

The post Welcome Back to IP Osgoode: Here's a Sneak Peek at what's to come this year appeared first on IPOsgoode.

At the beginning of 2020, when the team was first scheduled to compete, compulsory licensing seemed like a fun thought experiment and a great theoretical moot problem about balancing IP rights and public health. It quickly became an eerily relevant issue as the world rapidly shut down and essential medical items like masks, gloves, and ventilators became precious commodities. Doors stayed shut, Wi-Fi capacity limits got tested, and in the wake of the initial disbelief that the world was collectively at war with the most covert of enemies, there was little room to feel disappointment about the cancellation of the competition. As the months wore on, and a new normalcy crystallized, the team got word that the competition was back on, and that the 2020 competitors were invited to return. Two of the team members came back, and a third joined ranks in January of 2021.

The moot organizers pivoted to a Zoom format and accommodated its largest set of teams to date, with 32 schools battling for the title. The first day entailed a virtual welcome ceremony. Moments after the teamā€™s alarm clocks screamed to life at 6:30 am, each member logged into Zoom, sleepy-eyed and afflicted with the most serious cases of bed head. As the organizer scrolled through the competing teamsā€™ slides, it slowly became apparent that Osgoode had miscalculated. Slide after slide passed through the platform, with many a suit and rarely a smile. Then °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s slide came roaring in with a beaver, a moose, and what appeared to be a team member drinking maple syrup straight from the bottle. Whatever impression they made, the Ozzies quickly made it clear that they meant business.Ģż

The preliminaries were also no laughing matter, as the competition was fierce. Thankfully, Osgoode was blessed with the platinum package for coaching and the preliminaries were passed through with a breeze. As the team advanced on, excitement in the Osgoode community rose. The team entered the final match, buttressed with support from all angles in the Oz community, the IP space, and from their collective friends and family. The online format uniquely allowed all supporters to watch their team in action, and we felt the love. While Osgoode ultimately lost out in the grand final, the opportunity to experience this competition was a big ā€œWā€.

To our 2020 team member, Julianna Felendzer, we hope we did you proud. Thanks for helping us secure the invite to the oral rounds!

To our coaches Jennifer Davidson, Stephen Selznick, Any Obando and Giuseppina Dā€™Agostino, we are forever grateful for your dedication and your support, especially when it was just a ā€œhair toss, check your nailsā€ kind of day!

Co-written by Anna Morrish, Alex Dumais, and Karin Kazakevich, 2021 Oxford International Intellectual Property Law Moot Runners Up

The post A Year in the Life of Three Oxford Moot Finalists appeared first on IPOsgoode.

Osgoode Hall Law School was one of a select 28 international teams to receive a coveted invitation to compete in the at the University of Oxford in England, a remarkable achievement considering that 66 teams applied from around the globe. Invitations were based on the top facta submitted over the fall term. The moot took place over three days from March 15^th ā€“ 17^th, 2018. Representing Osgoode were Will Chalmers, Jasmine Godfrey and John Wu. As the premier international IP moot, the event attracted some of the top international IP academics and practitioners to spend a few days in Oxford as judges.

The team faced an intensive two days of mooting during the preliminary rounds, with two moots each day, once as the appellant and once as the respondent. On the first day of the preliminary rounds, Osgoode faced the University of West Bengal (India) and Boston University (U.S). After a tiring first day of preliminary rounds, a cocktail reception re-energized the teams, giving students the opportunity to network with panelists, as well as converse with fellow mooters from all over the world. The team sported clever t-shirts with the phrase ā€œI Am Sexy and I Know It!ā€ (referencing a line in the moot problem), quickly winning Osgoode popularity amongst the other teams.

(L-R: Will Chalmers, Jasmine Godfrey, Dr. Emily Hudson, Aviv Gaon, John Wu, Jennifer Davidson)

The second day of the preliminary rounds consisted of another two rounds of moots, one against the University of Swinburne (Australia) and the other against the University of Cambridge (UK). Unlike most of the moots Osgoode participates in, the diversity of teams faced provided Osgoode students with the opportunity to observe styles of oral advocacy from almost every corner of the globe. Not only did the backgrounds of the mooters differ, but each judgeā€™s background (for example, whether an academic or a practitioner) differed, and a team's success depended on their ability to read the judgesā€™ styles and respond accordingly in answers. The Osgoode team performed well in the preliminary rounds, winning their first three moots, with the only loss coming narrowly to the ultimate finalists, Cambridge.

The preliminary rounds were concluded that night by a panel, or as Oxford likes to call it, a ā€œConverszioneā€. Mr. Justice Arnold, the author of Performersā€™ Rights, led the discussion with his thoughts on IP protection for non-human performers, particularly robots. Despite recognizing the economic reasons in support of protecting original AI produced work, he ultimately believes that the law quite clearly only protects human performances.

Dr. Manuel Berdoy, a biologist, spoke about the evolutionary factors leading to the dances and displays of exotic birds. He was followed by IP professor, Dr. Johanna Gibson, who proposed a new paradigm for IP inspired by the creative expression of dogs, shifting the focus away from an exclusionary property model, and towards a model based on relations between holders and users, producers and consumers. The panel was concluded by a presentation by Dr. Tom Smith, a famed chemist and pyrotechnics expert, who shared a behind-the-scenes look at the setup of a world-class fireworks display.

The panel was followed by a reception and dinner at the beautiful 15^th century dining hall at Pembroke College (once frequented by JRR Tolkien and Sir William Blackstone when they were students at Oxford!), where mooters, observers, clerks and judges were encouraged to engage with the panel topics and pose questions to the panelists. After dinner, the quarter-finalists were announced, with two Canadian teams advancing among the top-scoring eight teams: University of Ottawa and the winners of the 2017 Fox Moot, the University of Alberta.

On the final dayā€”once the quarter-finals and semi-finals had taken placeā€”students gathered in the Pichette Auditorium to listen to the finalists, the University of Cambridge and the University of New South Whales. Students had the unique opportunity to observe key questions posed to mooters by leading judges: Lord Justice Kitchin, the Honourable Mr. Justice Birss, and Mr. Justice Carr. The audience patiently waited for the judges to deliver the final decision on the case. The win was ultimately given to the deserving University of New South Whales.

Ģż

Cockatoos and Fireworks Displays: The Moot Problem

Most of us own smartphones, and few would imagine that taking a recording of a Canada Day fireworks display and subsequently producing our own display inspired by the original would constitute copyright infringement. Nonetheless, the appellant in the moot problem Arbus v Harris thought otherwise, and 28 teams from law schools all over the world congregated at beautiful Pembroke College to discuss whether the reproduction of such a display can constitute infringement. The teams also argued whether there can be copyright in a cockatoo dance performance despite the inherently chaotic nature of such a show, in addition to whether someone can be a joint author of a software, despite possessing no coding knowledge.

The was designed to deal with all these emerging IP issues, in addition to the more fantastical question of whether animals can be considered ā€œindividualsā€ for the purpose of creating IP (recently raised in the case of , the ā€œmonkey selfieā€ case in the U.S.). Despite the seriousness of the issues discussed in the problem, the writer of the moot problemā€”Dr. Emily Hudson, Chair of the Organising Committee and co-ordinator for the mootā€”clearly has a sense of humour. The Cockatoo Performance in the case featured cockatoos dancing to the song ā€œI am Sexy and I Know Itā€™ by LMFAO, and the crowd chuckled upon finding out on the first day that the parties in the problem were based off characters from the movie Horrible Bosses.

Given that the case takes place in the fictional court of ā€œErewhonā€ (a semi-palindrome of ā€œNowhereā€), teams were welcome to bring in case law and legislation from any jurisdiction. The Osgoode team benefitted from understanding how IP law differs across jurisdictions, an appreciation that we gained through our own research in drafting the facta. Given that the moot problem left issues intentionally vague, the Osgoode team heard a variety of different approaches to the problem during the oral rounds, such as how fixation of the performance can occur without the authorā€™s permission, or how the fireworks display that the respondent created can be considered an adaption of the software.

Key Learnings

The team was supported every step of the way by our fabulous coaches, which included and , from Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, , from Deeth Williams Wall LLP, , PhD candidate at Osgoode Hall, and renowned IP law professor . Our coaches whipped the team into shape and ensured that we were ready to face the rigorous standards demanded by the Moot. These coaches were incredibly generous in offering hours of their time week after week, to ensure that we could answer a host of possible questions from judges as seamlessly as possibleā€”with proper Oxford etiquetteā€”which was crucial to the teamā€™s success. Along the way, the team received invaluable feedback from mooting before top practitioners and judges, including the Honourable Mr. Marshall Rothstein, QC. and the Honourable Mr. Roger Hughes, QC. The team is grateful for the support of Prof. Shelley Kierstead, Director of Mooting, Prof. Giuseppina Dā€™Agostino, Founder & Director of IP Osgoode, and Maria Frasca, Administrative Assistant of Mooting and Lawyering Competitions, without which participation at the moot would not have been possible. Of course, we are grateful for the help of fellow mooters at Osgoode, who listened to our submissions and actively asked us questions.

(L-R: The Honourable Mr. Roger Hughes QC, Jasmine Godfrey, John Wu, Will Chalmers, Jennifer Davidson)

This was a unique competition, bringing together people from all over the world to the ancient town of Oxford, united by their shared passion for IP law and litigation. Observing the dedication of the judges, many of whom return to Oxford year after year to judge the moot, was truly inspiring to the Osgoode team, and this yearā€™s team will surely continue their involvement by helping prepare future teams. The Osgoode team left Oxford not only with a new international IP network, but also a greater understanding of IP law internationally. The Oxford IP Moot has undoubtedly been one of the highlights of our legal education, and all three of us are immensely grateful to have been given this opportunity.

(L-R: Prof. David Vaver, Will Chalmers, John Wu, Jasmine Godfrey, Aviv Gaon, Jennifer Davidson).

William Chalmers is a JD Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School.Ģż Jasmine Godfrey is a JD/MBA Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School and the Schulich School of Business. John Wu isĢż JD/MBA Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School and the Schulich School of Business.

The post Cockatoos, Fireworks, and More: Osgoode Competes at the 16th Annual Oxford International IP Moot appeared first on IPOsgoode.

The quartet of Jordan Fine, Alicja Puchta, Colin Lyon, and Adrienne Meyers are pleased to share their experience at the moot.

The Problem: A Dimpled Bottle and Sparkling Wine

Imagine: for 11 years, I have owned a valid patent monopoly on a glass bottle. The bottle has dimples lining its interior which enhance fizziness of carbonated drinks held within; but, I claimed the bottle specifically for enhancing sparkling wines. To what extent am I tied to that claim? In other words, can competitors fill my bottles with non-wine drinks (like sparkling apple cider, or non-alcoholic elderflower sodas) to avoid infringement?

Imagine too: I am not just an inventor but also a vineyard. So, for all 11 years, I have only sold a very affordable (and very profitable) high-alcohol wine in my bottle. It seems the local youths are getting quite drunk, quite fast from the combination of high alcohol and enhanced fizziness. Can my bottle patent be invalidated on grounds that it violates public policy or morality?

Finally, imagine: my wine belongs to a class of products known as ā€œErewineā€: a double fermented sparkling white wine made from locally grown grapes. Does my competitor commit extended passing off by calling their non-alcoholic elderflower soda Erewine too?

The for the 2017 annual was packed with IP issues. It landed this year on the three major themes above: claim construction, invalidity for violating public policy or morality, and extended passing off.

The problem was drafted craftily by ā€”Chair of the Organising Committee and co-ordinator for the mootā€”and it left certain key facts ambiguous (for example, the patent claim is significantly excerpted). Counsel for either side had ample wiggle room to devise and frame unique and creative arguments.

The Competition

After three months of careful legal research, drafting, reviewing, and editing two factaā€”one each for the Appellant and the Respondentā€”Osgoode submitted them to Oxford. A month later Osgoode was delighted to discover we were invited to the oral rounds, as our facta ranked among the top 24 of the nearly 60 teams that submitted.

Mooting demands outstanding advocacy. Accordingly, preparations and rehearsals escalated quickly. We had two months to sharpen our oral arguments before intellectual property practitioners and judges, and reach a sufficient level to compete with our adversaries.

Because of the competitionā€™s international nature, it was essential that we could concisely answer complicated questions, the answers to which could span countless legal systems and common law principles. Comprehension, memorization, and delivery were crucial. Studying and practicing became a daily ritual. Finding any opportunity, we rehearsed in the shower to a panel of rubber ducks, practiced in public while walking our dogs, and presented submissions to our patient and supportive significant others and parents.

As we improved, we were given some exceptional opportunities. We argued weekly before panels of practitioners at and , including two of our coaches and . We were thrilled to argue before former Supreme Court Justice, the . We made trips to the Federal Court, before the , and even to the Supreme Court of Canada to argue before . The utter highlight of our legal education was arguing before Justice Abella from a podium frequented in landmark decisions by the best and brightest legal minds in Canada.

(L-R: Colin Lyon, Madam Justice Rosalie Silberman Abella, Aviv Gaon, Jordan Fine)

(L-R: Jordan Fine, Jennifer Davidson, Alicja Puchta, The Honourable Roger T. Hughes, Colin Lyon)

Preliminary Rounds (Thursday March 16th ā€“ Saturday March 17th)

After a scrumptious traditional English breakfast in Pembroke Collegeā€™s exquisite dining hall we carted along ancient cobbled streets several suitcases packed with our heavy bundles of authorities to Oxfordā€™s law faculty. Shortly following an introduction by Prof. Hudson, the competition began. Over two days we faced teams from four universities, before panels comprised of two or three judges.

On day one, we first confronted strong advocacy from Tsinghua (Beijing) before Hilary Pearson, PLC, and Professor Brian Havel (University of Oxford). We then met another tough foe in Monash (Melbourne), before Prof. Hudson (Kingā€™s College London), and Mitchell Beebe (Herbert Smith Freehills LLP).

On day two, we opened as appellants against the formidable champions, Bucerius (Hamburg), before Jonathan Ball (Norton Rose Fulbright), and Karen Fong (Collyer Bristow LLP). We ended the preliminary round against the other finalists and hometown rivals, Toronto, before Ian Starr (D Young & Co LLP), Jen Le Miere, (Kymab Ltd), and Marta Iljadica, (University of Aberdeen).

Despite strong performances in all four roundsā€”at least according to our coaches, Aviv Gaon (Osgoode Hall Law School PhD Candidate) and Jennifer Davidson (Deeth Williams Wall LLP)ā€”we finished the preliminary rounds modestly with only one win and three losses. At dinner on the eve of the quarter-finals, we were surprised to learn we were among the top eight teams; little did we know at that time our scores placed us as the top seed entering the playoffs!

Playoffs (Saturday March 18th)

We once again faced Buceriusā€”as respondents this time per moot rulesā€”in the quarter-finals, before a panel of three judges including Geoffrey Pritchard, (Three New Square) and once again Marta Iljadica. Facing strong advocacy from both sides [the author comments as impartial sideline observer acting exclusively for the appellants] the panel had a very tough decision to make. Ultimately, Bucerius was victorious.

(Of course, not all was lost for team Osgoode; albeit disappointed by the loss, we were granted an extra few hours to tour Oxfordā€™s local scenery and ancient pubs.)

In the final round, Bucerius faced respondents from the University of Toronto. The finalists argued in front of a panel of three esteemed judges in the Honourable Mr Justice Birss, Her Honour Judge Melissa Clarke, and the Right Honourable Lord Justice Floyd. The hot bench challenged the competitors with posers, but also met them frequently with humour and wit. It appeared close at the roundā€™s end, and Bucerius took the win.

The Gala

The gala took place shortly after the finals, and once again in the charming Pembroke dining hall. During a three-course meal, the award winners were announced (see the complete list , along with pictures from the finals and gala ). As noted, Osgoode was surprised and delighted to receive the award for highest ranked team after the preliminary rounds.

The Oxford Moot was an utterly spectacular experience. We all agreed that the work we put into our written and oral arguments exceeded any other academic pursuits before. We are certainly all stronger legal minds and advocates as a result. Make no mistake, we had fun too. We owe special thanks to Professor David Vaver for his support and guidance; to Justices Abella, Rothstein, and Hughes for taking the time to hear us argue the morality of dimpled bottle patents; and our coaches who were with us week after week: Jennifer, Aviv, Stephen Selznick and Stephen Henderson from Cassels Brock. We could not have succeeded without you. You each made such astoundingly significant contributions to our legal education and we hope in turn we have made you proud of our accomplishments.

(L-R: Aviv Gaon, Alicja Puchta, Jordan Fine, Colin Lyon, Jennifer Davidson, Prof. David Vaver)

Jordan Fine is Senior Editor of the IPilogue and Intellectual Property Journal and a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School.Ģż He was happy to contribute this blog on behalf of his teammates, Colin Lyon, Alicja Puchta and Adrienne Meyers.

The post Protecting Fizziness: Osgoode at the 15th Annual Oxford Intellectual Property Moot appeared first on IPOsgoode.

The moot is held annually at the University of Oxford and is organized by the Oxford Intellectual Property Research Centre. °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s team qualified for the oral rounds for the third consecutive year. The 2017 moot problem concerns a fictitious case, Whispering Gums Winery v Loddon River Vineyards, between two alcohol manufacturers from a fictitious country named "Erehwon". The case raises several novel IP issues. Whispering Gums owns a patent on a bottle that enhances the effervescence of sparkling wines and sells a brand of local sparkling wine called ā€œWizardā€™s Wizz Erewineā€ that is contained in their patented bottle.Ģż The dispute is over Loddon River's use of the mark "Erewine" for two of its products, a sweet apple cider and a non-alcoholic elderflower flavoured drink. Whispering Gums is accusing Loddon River of patent infringement and extended passing off of ā€œErewineā€, while Loddon River argues that Whispering Gum's patent is invalid on the grounds that it contravenes public policy or morality.

°æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s team is mentored by IP Osgoode's Prof. David Vaver and Aviv Gaon, a PhD Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. They are coached by leading IP lawyers, Stephen Selznick and Stephen Henderson from Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, and Jennifer R. Davidson, an Osgoode graduate and articling student at Deeth Williams Wall LLP.

The team is also enthusiastically looking forward to their upcoming meetings with IP Osgoode advisory board members, the Hon. Roger T. Hughes, former justice of the Federal Court of Canada, and the Hon. Marshall Rothstein, former justice of the Supreme Court of Canada.

(Pictured, from left: Colin Lyon, Madam Justice Abella, Aviv Gaon and Jordan Fine)

IP °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s founder & director, Prof. Pina Dā€™Agostino said ā€œI am very proud of the accomplishment of the IP Osgoode team. In the past three years we have managed to secure our place among the leading schools in the field of IP.ā€

The post Osgoode's Oxford IP Moot Team Visits the SCC appeared first on IPOsgoode.

The potential detriment to brand value from this parasitic practice has become such a concern that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) insists that host countries enact special protection legislation over their marks and Games space. Even with these protections, the issues are challenging to manage from both a legal and PR perspective.

This was the subject matter students from around the world contemplated and debated at the . The moot problem gave law students the opportunity to tackle the legal intricacies of ambush marketing and develop arguments for and against the special legislation within the context of the moot issues.

The (Similar to the Olympic Games) in the equally fictional jurisdiction of Erewhon (a semi-palindrome of ā€˜nowhereā€™). Outside Games venues, an animal Sanctuary with no relationship to the Games, posted four identical billboard advertisements depicting a photograph of two juvenile billibies (fictional animals) atop the tag line ā€œFor more fun and games, visit the Erewhonian Animal Sanctuaryā€. This paralleled the two cartoon billibies that had been designed and launched as the Gamesā€™ official mascots. Unauthorized use of billiby indicia and the word Games was prohibited under special Erewhonian legislation (the Indicia Act) designed to create a limited monopoly over use of Gamesā€™ marks.

To add to the fun (and games), the problem also included a second respondent who had initially been the illustrator of the Games mascots, but later became dismayed by a perceived hyper-commercialization of the Games organizers. He chose to comment by drawing imposter mascots engaging in distasteful behaviours. He put these images on products and sold them to the public. These actions potentially violated both the Indicia Act and copyright law. Under copyright law, the illustrator claimed statutory defences of fair dealing and a rarely used subsequent works of the artist defence.

The moot is designed in two distinct parts ā€“ the written rounds and the oral stage. Approximately fifty teams from law schools around the world submitted facta to the Oxford moot using international jurisprudence and legislation to support their ambush marketing arguments. The organizing committee selected the top twenty-four facta and invited those teams to Oxford for the oral rounds. , since Osgoode first participated in the moot in 2015, Osgoode Hall Law School made the cut.

The team had eight weeks to prepare for the oral rounds with the dedicated assistance of their coaches, and of Cassels Brock, and the ; with this dream team, °æ²õ²µ“Ē“Ē»å±šā€™s international IP mooting squad entered the oral rounds armed with the skills to compete in this illustrious international competition.

This year, the moot had representation from Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, Australia, India, Singapore, China and Malaysia. The preliminary round consisted of four moots. Osgoode faced some terrific talent with solid, well-reasoned submissions. At the end of these rounds, the teams, their coaches. distinguished jurists, practitioners and academics joined together for an evening of conversazione, including an enchanting formal dinner in the palatial 19^th century Pembroke Hall. At the end of the evening, the top eight quarter-finalists were announced and Osgoode was named amongst this distinguished group.

The team members, Jennifer Davidson, Jacquilynne Schlesier and Colin Lyon, wish to extend their sincere thanks to the dedicated practitioners, professors, administrators and students who assisted in the preparation process: The Honourable Mr. Justice Marshall Rothstein for his insight and feedback; Stephen Selznick and Stephen Henderson for their tireless support throughout; IP Osgoode Founder & Director, Prof. Giuseppina Dā€™Agostino for her continuous encouragement; Andrew Shaughnessy of Torys LLP, David Tait and Rebecca Crane of McCarthy TĆ©trault; Urszula Wodjtyra, Kevin Siu and Lou Chang of Smart and Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh; Michelle Li, Dr. Carys Craig, Natia Tucci, Faisal Bhabha and Aviv Gaon of Osgoode Hall Law School; and the Osgoode Student Mooting Society. The team is endlessly grateful for your support.

Left to Right: Prof. Giuseppina D'Agostino, The Honourable Marshall Rothstein, Jennifer R. Davidson, Jacquilynne Schlesier, Colin Lyon

Left to Right: Aviv Gaon, Jacquilynne Schlesier, Jennifer R. Davidson, Colin Lyon

Jennifer R. Davidson and Jacquilynne Schlesier are JD Candidates at Osgoode Hall Law School and members of Team Quatchi for the Oxford International IP Moot.Ģż

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