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On 22 May 2024, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that a General Election will take place on 4 July 2024. Parliament was then prorogued on 24 May 2024 which allowed a mere 2 days for 'wash up' - the process by which outstanding bills may be rushed through the parliamentary process.

Press and Media

Navigating the Generational Shifts in Consumer Behaviour

Published on 15 Apr 2024. By Jeremy Drew, Partner, Head of Commercial and Karen Hendy, Partner, Head of Corporate and Ciara Cullen, Partner

Gen Z, the first generation to be digital natives and the newest consumer, is turning retail on its head. In its latest edition of Retail Compass, international law firm RPC, takes a closer look at how the priorities of Gen Zers, a third of the global population, are shaping retail and consumer offerings.

Perspective - Blog

Ginfringement: Success for M&S in the Court of Appeal in registered design spat with Aldi

Published on 15 Mar 2024. By Rory Graham, Associate and Georgia Davis, Of Counsel

M&S and Aldi's gin bottle battle over design rights has reached a conclusion (for now) as the Court of Appeal has unanimously upheld the IPEC's decision that Aldi's bottle infringed M&S' design.

Press and Media

RPC advises the shareholders of Wireless Social on its acquisition by The Access Group

Published on 06 Feb 2024.

International law firm RPC has advised the shareholders of Wireless Social Holdings Limited (Wireless Social) as it becomes part of Access Hospitality, a division of The Access Group.

Perspective - Blog

Clear as gin: M&S and Aldi take liquor bottle battle to the Court of Appeal

Published on 26 Jan 2024. By Rory Graham, Associate and Georgia Davis, Of Counsel

Intellectual property enthusiasts' favourite supermarket adversaries were back at loggerheads this week as M&S and Aldi appear before the Court of Appeal. The pair sought to thrash out a first instance decision handed down in the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC) regarding alleged infringement of M&S' registered design rights in a gin bottle.

Perspective - Blog

Going Green - Draft Sustainability Guidance from the CMA

Published on 03 Apr 2023. By Ciara Cullen, Partner and Melanie Musgrave, Of Counsel and Sophie Tuson, Senior Associate

Following its public consultation, the CMA has published its advice to government on how competition and consumer laws can help meet the UK's environmental goals.

Perspective - Blog

M&S v Aldi – lookalike claims lit up by design rights

Published on 24 Mar 2023. By Ciara Cullen, Partner and Harpreet Kaur, Associate

As lookalike products rise in prominence, the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court's (IPEC) recent ruling that the sale and advertisement of Aldi's 'Infusionist' range of favoured gins infringed M&S's UK registered designs protecting the light-up bottles containing its 'Snow Globe' gin range (Marks and Spencer PLC v Aldi Stores Limited [2023] EWHC 178) highlights the utility of registered design rights in circumstances where other intellectual property rights (IPR) are often less able to provide protection.

Perspective - Blog

Lookalikes and passing off—bottle design get-up claim (Au Vodka)

Published on 07 Nov 2022. By Ciara Cullen, Partner and Sarah Mountain, Partner and Samuel Coppard, Senior Associate

Currently there's significant activity in the lookalikes space. The Au Vodka claim (Au Vodka v NE10 Vodka [2022] EWHC 2371), which focuses on bottle design 'get-up', arrived in the courts for an interim injunction hearing in September 2022. Au Vodka's application was dismissed. The judgment shows that passing off—get-up claims based on shape can be challenging to bring, particularly at the interim stage, and prompts the question of whether it's possible to bring Cofemel and copyright into the lookalikes arena.

Press and Media

The Metaverse, green claims and data privacy – what critical issues lie ahead for retailers and consumer brands in Autumn 2022?

Published on 12 Oct 2022. By Jeremy Drew, Partner, Head of Commercial and Karen Hendy, Partner, Head of Corporate and Ciara Cullen, Partner

International law firm RPC launches the latest edition of Retail Compass

Press and Media

RPC’s Retail Compass Autumn edition: What challenges do retailers face post-pandemic?

Published on 21 Sep 2021. By Kimberley Nanson, Senior PR & External Communications Manager

RPC, the international law firm has launched the Autumn edition of its Retail Compass, which explores legal and policy changes that are set to impact the retail industry.

Perspective - Blog

Return of the MAC (clauses): renegotiating or exiting your supply chain contracts

Published on 12 May 2020. By David Cran, Partner, Head of IP & Tech

As more challenges arise from the current pandemic, suppliers and customers in the retail supply chain will be looking at their contracts to see how best to navigate the challenges they face. This may involve reviewing existing supply chain arrangements and seeing if there is a way to renegotiate or exit existing contracts.

Perspective - Blog

And the winner is... that pre-loved dress

Published on 03 Mar 2020. By Ela Broderick-Basar, Associate

The recent awards season has seen a new dress-code emerging on the red carpet - wearing clothing either rented or previously worn, in an aim to project a message of sustainability. This reflects trends in the wider fashion world, where sustainability models like rental and resale are emerging fast as brands and consumers look to minimise their impact.

Perspective - Blog

BrewBlog: Sober ad campaign leaves brewery with an unwanted hangover.

Published on 14 Jan 2020.

In response to complaints about an advertisement published by BrewDog Plc the ASA found that the advertisement had breached CAP code (Edition 12) rules 1.3 (Social responsibility) and 4.1 (Harm and offence) and ordered BrewDog not to run the ad again.

Perspective - Blog

The Future of Retail is Green

Published on 12 Dec 2019. By Harpreet Kaur, Associate

2019 has been a year of environmental awareness, aptly demonstrated by David Attenborough's Glastonbury appearance and Greta Thunberg's speech to world leaders at the UN Climate Action Summit.

Perspective - Blog

Can retail drones deliver the goods?

Published on 03 Dec 2019. By Jon Bartley, Partner

A recent flurry of patent registrations provides an insight into how this futuristic technology could soon become a reality for consumers.

Perspective - Blog

The ‘Meghan effect’: its impact on retailers

Published on 18 May 2018. By Emily Saffer, Associate

The right people endorsing a brand can have a significant impact on its popularity. For example, brands that have been associated with Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle have seen a huge surge in their profile.

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