John Deavin Medical devices are fertile ground for innovation (as reflected by the large number of patent filings in the industry) and, although the size of the medical devices market is currently smaller than pharmaceuticals, John expects the balance to tip the other way in a number of years. He then took us through the regulatory regime for the classification and nomenclature of medical devices, as well as the rules relating to branding.  The general tendency for manufacturers to choose names which allude to the way in which the product works, must be made to fit with the regulatory prohibitions on names which overstate the efficacy or other characteristics of the device. In the wake of high profile safety issues such as those relating to PIP breast implants, John explained that the core European legal framework for medical devices is due to be changed within the next few years, including the advent of a new Medical Devices Regulation. Overall, John painted a picture of medical device technology as a burgeoning and fastevolving sector, with exciting advances being made in areas such as telemetry, biomaterial-compatible devices and stem cell therapies. One imagines that the legal framework may struggle to keep pace. remember than alpha-numeric codes for the identification of specific trials. Branding can also serve to signal a pharmaceutical company’s commitment, as well as providing a single nomenclature for use by multiple stakeholders such as regulatory bodies, hospitals, patients, scientists and journalists. Tapio went on to describe the process for creating and protecting brand names for clinical trials, including a description of the compliance issues that may arise. Other matters requiring consideration include territorial issues (not just where the trial is conducted but where the trial and its results will be referred to), and the question of whether there is trade mark use (the USPTO’s position being that trade marking is permissible for clinical trial services supplied to others but not for trials conducted internally). Undoubtedly there can also be drawbacks from seeking to register clinical trial names as trade marks, such as cost and cluttering of registers. Ultimately, Tapio was of the view that trade mark registrations are probably not necessary. He did, however, make a number of practical recommendations and advocated the proper management of clinical trial names as a form of best practice, whether they are registered as trade marks or not. The final talk was given by Katie Cameron of RGC Jenkins, who outlined the changes to the CTM Regulation which have, of course, been in the planning for some years. Amongst the new provisions, we will see both OHIM and the CTM itself change to shiny new names, along with removal of the requirement for graphical and, in the UK IPO, it has led to a new practice note being issued. In the final part of her talk, Verena reflected on registration strategy and the potential pitfalls of filing in black and white. In particular, due to their wider scope, such marks are more likely to conflict with earlier marks, including earlier marks in colour. Katie Cameron Verena von Bomhard Our next speaker, Verena von Bomhard of Hogan Lovells, Alicante, gave a talk on the topic of black and white trade marks, focussing on the Convergence Programme between trade mark offices, aimed at achieving a common approach to scope of protection. On the question of whether use of a black and white mark in colour constitutes genuine use, there is no change in practice under the common approach, as the issue remains whether the change in colour alters the mark’s distinctive character. Verena went on to look at the scope of protection afforded by black and white marks. In principle, such a mark extends to all colours, unless the particular colour format gives rise to a distinctive element. As to the impact of use by the proprietor of a black and white mark in a particular colour format, following the Specsavers decision, it is apparent that, over time, this can have an impact on the scope of protection. This is different from the position in Germany 9 Tapio Blanc Posing the question of whether clinical trials represent a branding opportunity, he ran through a number of perceived advantages of branding for clinical trials. For example, brand names are easier to Following lunch (which proved to be another great networking opportunity in the beautiful surroundings of the Savoy), Tapio Blanc of Hoffman La Roche gave a talk on clinical trial branding. Sophie Bodet drew the conference to a close by thanking all the speakers and noted that we will meet again in Chicago representation of applications, and colours as such being acceptable for registration. Registration is to be denied where the translation of a mark into any official language of the EU gives a meaning that would be refused, and there is also a proposal to delete disclaimers. Katie went on to describe the implementation of IP Translator (including the prospect of OHIM allowing proprietors to clarify whether or not they intended to cover everything within a class), and the requirement that potential adverse effect on the essential function of a trade mark should be taken into account in contentious proceedings concerning so-called double identity infringement. She also commented on changes to the proof of use requirement in opposition proceedings, as well as the fact that bad faith is to be added as a basis for opposition. The new provisions in relation to goods in transit are to be welcomed, as is the extension of enforcement measures to address preparatory actions (such as importation of small counterfeit parts for subsequent assembly in the EU). Having run through the aforementioned changes, amongst others, Katie concluded with some reflections on some topics which she considered had been missed, including the absence of measures directed at improving harmonisation between the practices of different national trade mark offices.