Meyer West IP

02/11/2026

OpenAI launched GPT-6 Astra in September. A month later, it was sued over the name.

Software company TradeSun says it filed its ASTRA trade mark in 2021 and uses it for AI-powered business software. Lawyer Monthly reports that the claim relies on “reverse confusion”. That’s the risk that customers of a smaller, earlier brand think they’re dealing with the bigger company that came later.

OpenAI disputes the claim and no court has ruled yet. It’s an example of a well-known brand running into an earlier registered name.

This post is general information only and not legal advice.

26/10/2026

Crocs has taken US discount chain Five Below to court over a $7 children’s clog.

According to Rolling Out, Crocs says the shoe copies the features that make its Classic Clog recognisable: the pattern of holes, the trapezoid openings and the textured band. Its charm business, Jibbitz, also claims the matching charms infringe three of its patents.

The case shows how a product’s shape can do the work of a logo. A $7 clog next to a $50 one also explains why dupes sell, and why brand owners push back.

This post is general information only and not legal advice.

19/10/2026

Aldi has built a reputation on products that look a lot like the brands you know. In August, the Full Federal Court looked at where that strategy crosses a line.

The court upheld findings that packaging on Aldi’s Mamia baby snacks infringed copyright in the rival Bellies brand. It also found two more products were in breach. The evidence showed Aldi’s design agency had used the Bellies packaging as a benchmark.

As The Conversation pointed out, copyright protects the expression of an idea, not the idea itself. A cartoon animal on a white pack is a concept. A particular cartoon animal, drawn a particular way, is something else.

This post is general information only and not legal advice.

11/10/2026

Read our latest blog where we look at the patents behind some of Dad's favourite gadgets:

From the electric drill to Wi-Fi, some of Dad's most-used gadgets trace back to Australian patents. Discover the IP stories behind the inventions that changed everyday life, and what happens when patent protection is missed.

04/10/2026

Taylor Swift, Matthew McConaughey, Lionel Richie and the Backstreet Boys have all filed trade marks over their voices and catchphrases - a bid to fight AI deepfakes.

The idea: a phrase in a distinctive voice works like a logo the public ties to one source. Sounds can already be registered (the old NBC chime is one), so this stretches that idea further.

It's untested, though. Trade marks stop confusion about who's behind a product - they weren't built to cover a whole persona.

This post is general information only and not legal advice.

27/09/2026

A US court has dismissed a trade mark case against Lady Gaga over her use of the word "Mayhem" for her album, tour and merchandise. A surf and lifestyle company, Lost International, held a registered trade mark for MAYHEM on clothing and argued Gaga's merch could make people think the two were connected.

The court disagreed. It found the company hadn't shown that Gaga's use actually misled anyone into believing there was a link between a pop album and a surfwear brand. Because the album title was treated as an expressive work, its use was protected unless it explicitly misled consumers about the source.

This post is general information only and not legal advice.

21/09/2026

Sport is big business in Australia, and behind every logo and broadcast deal sits a mix of IP rights working together.

In our blog we walk through how the NRL, Cricket Australia and smaller activewear labels use trade marks, copyright, designs and enforcement tools to protect it all.

From trademark registration to anti-counterfeiting technology, discover how Australian sports brands and organisations protect their intellectual property, merchandise rights, and brand value under Australian law.

14/09/2026

Molly Tea, a popular Chinese tea chain, used a four-petal floral logo across its stores and packaging. Louis Vuitton argued it was too similar to its own registered floral marks - the ones behind the Monogram pattern - and in June a Suzhou court agreed, awarding LV around US$1.5 million. Molly Tea has said it will appeal.

What the case shows is how these disputes get judged: the court looked at the overall impression the logo creates for an ordinary customer, rather than dissecting each element. And marks with a big reputation tend to get broader protection.

It stirred up a lot of public feeling in China too - hundreds of millions of views online, much of it on the tea chain's side. Interestingly, it later came out that Molly Tea had itself tried and failed to register similar floral marks before landing on this design.

General information only, not legal advice.

07/09/2026

Something worth knowing if your business produces original work that could be copied online.

In a recent Federal Court matter, Universal Music obtained orders requiring internet providers to block access to sites infringing copyright - and to keep those orders up to date as the sites moved to new domains to get around them.

Most small businesses won't ever be in a case like this. What it shows is broader: copyright owners have genuine enforcement options, and the courts have adapted to the way infringement happens online.

General information only, not legal advice.

30/08/2026

A lot of people treat trade mark registration as a finish line - mark's on the register, job done. This case is a reminder it doesn't always work that way.

In a recent Full Federal Court matter, the Registrar had decided a mark shouldn't have been registered in the first place, because it was too similar to marks already on the register. The dispute went up through the courts over whether pulling the registration was the right call.

What it illustrates is that a registration can be challenged even after it's granted. Being on the register isn't the last word on a mark.

General information only, not legal advice.