Here is Think IP Strategy’s weekly selection of top intellectual property news breaking in the blogosphere and internet.

Highlights this week included:

European Court of Justice trashes planned unified patent litigation system : Avis 1/09 (Kluwer Patent Blog) (IAM) (ipeg) (BLOG@IP::JUR) (inovia’s Foreign Filing Blog) (Kluwer Patent Blog) (IP Spotlight) (PatLit) (IPKat) (PatLit) (EPLAW)

Senate passes S. 23 (95-5) (Patent Docs) (IPBiz) (IP Whiteboard) (Patent Docs) (Inventive Step) (IP Spotlight) (Blawg IT) (Patents Post-Grant) (Patent Law Practice Center)

US proposals for IP in the Trans-Pacific Partnership leaked (LawFont.com) (Michael Geist) (KEI) (Public Knowledge) (Ars Technica)

Please join the discussion by adding your comments on any of these stories, and please do let us know if you think we’ve missed something important, or if there is a source you think should be monitored.

Global

Global – General

2011 IP Hall of Fame inductees announced (IP Think Tank)

WTO talks on geographical indications unable to achieve lift-off (IP Watch)

US proposals for IP in the Trans-Pacific Partnership leaked (LawFont.com) (Michael Geist) (KEI) (Public Knowledge) (Ars Technica)

Don’t let TPP become the new ACTA: Contact your lawmakers and demand transparency! (EFF)

Ruminations on IP due diligence (IPKat)

More news on the soon-to-launch International IP Strategists Association (IAM)

Global – Trade Marks / Brands

The future of copyright: WIPO’s vision (1709 Blog)

WIPO launches new on-line tool to facilitate brand searches (WIPO)

Global – Patents

Cost-effective international patenting strategies (inovia’s Foreign Filing Blog)

Intellectual Property Today top patent firms list for 2011 released (Maier & Maier)

FreePatentsOnline adds non-patent literature collection (Patent Librarian’s Notebook)

Patentscope adds EPO collection (Patent Librarian’s Notebook)

Prior art searching – top 5 online research tools (Article One Partners Blog)

Crowdsourcing series: Patents and glass houses (Article One Partners Blog)

Global – Copyright

World Blind Union won’t be sidetracked in quest for treaty on reading access (IP Watch)

Australia

Patent reform exposed (part I – raising the inventive step Patentology) (part II – usefulness Patentology)

If you want to stop your ex-employees starting up a competitor business, Blackmagic won’t get you there! – FCAFC decision in Blackmagic Design Pty Ltd v Overliese (IP Whiteboard)  

Caribbean

Carribean IP: Establishing an arbitral tribunal for the region (IP Watch)

Canada

Petition launched in opposition to CETA (Michael Geist)

Clerical error in the Intellectual Property Office: Repligen Corp. v. Canada (A.G.) (IP Osgoode)

China

China’s future knowledge economy to lead to more litigation abroad by Chinese patentees (PatLit)

Gary Locke to be next US Ambassador to China. And there was much rejoicing. (China Hearsay)

Land Rover suing Geely for registering its Chinese characters ‘Lu Hu’ (IP Dragon)

Denmark

Louis Vuitton continues attack on Danish art (Innovationpartners)

Europe

European Court of Justice trashes planned unified patent litigation system : Avis 1/09 (Kluwer Patent Blog) (IAM) (ipeg) (BLOG@IP::JUR) (inovia’s Foreign Filing Blog) (Kluwer Patent Blog) (IP Spotlight) (PatLit) (IPKat) (PatLit) (EPLAW)

EU Council authorises enhanced cooperation (EPLAW) (BLOG@IP::JUR)

Two steps forward and one back – The latest amendments decided by the Administrative Council of the EPO (Kluwer Patent Blog)

European orphans – Commission Vice-President speaks (1709 Copyright Blog) (Michael Geist)

New blog sees EPO president making good on transparency claims (IAM)

Trade marks in Europe: the Max Planck Study (Class 46) (IPKat)

ECJ speaks on registrability of signs composes exclusively of numerals: P Agencja Wydawnicza Technopol sp. z o.o. v OHIM (Class 46)

OHIM Board of Appeal and the letter ‘W’: R 1118/2010-1 (Class 46)

Egypt

News from the Egyptian Patent Office – examination fees, late filing (Afro-IP)

Germany

German Federal Patent Court  – Notoriety for general use: Trade Marks – TELFEXAN  and TEFLON (Afro-IP) (Class 46)

Recent decisions of Bundespatentgericht prove with a little imagination its sometimes possible to overcome relative objections (Class 46)

Hong Kong

Patents in Hong Kong (IP Dragon)

India

Summary of 3(d) and 3(e) decisions in 2010 at the IPDTO (Spicy IP)

Major irregularities in Mr. Rahaman’s appointment to the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (Spicy IP) (Spicy IP)

Update on the Wiley cases and ‘parallel exports’ (Spicy IP)

Montenegro

Montenegro designs law: a little novelty (Class 99)

Portugal

2010 trade mark applications in Portugal (Class 46)

Russia

Russia softens criminal sanctions for trade mark infringement (Class 46)

South America

WIPO to support South American countries in regional collaborative project (WIPO)

South Korea

South Korea’s deficit in patent royalty payments (IP finance)

Spain

‘Sustainable economy’ means more (and better) IP – Spanish Government says (Class 46)

Switzerland

Federal Administrative Court overturns refusal of GAP due to name of French town (Class 46)

Turkey

IPKat banned in Turkey – but he’s not alone (IPKat)

United Kingdom

Head of UK IP review says it is time for change (IAM)

Summary judgment procedure for patent disputes: Court of Appeal overturns Patent Court’s decision: Virgin v Delta (Kluwer Patent Blog)

When the Royals Wed, it’s time for the peasants to make merrie … – temporary waiver public performance licence charges (1709 Blog)

PCC Page 19: Time for review (PatLit)

United States

US General

The 2011 Special 301 public hearing: my impressions (Public Knowledge)

US Patent Reform

Patent reform in the House of Representatives – Dennis Crouch’s written testimony (Patently-O)

Patent reform passed in Senate: House likely to introduce bill this month (Patently-O)

Senate passes S. 23 (95-5) (Patent Docs) (IPBiz) (IP Whiteboard) (Patent Docs) (Inventive Step) (IP Spotlight) (Blawg IT) (Patents Post-Grant) (Patent Law Practice Center)

Reaction to Senate passage of S. 23 (Patent Docs)

America Invents Act – First to invent and a filing date focus (Patently-O)

US Patents

United States Patent and Trademark Office’s ‘Humanitarian Pilot Proposal’ comments by KEI, MSF, Oxfam, PC and UAEM (Knowledge Ecology International)

Federal Circuit en banc patent decisions (Patently-O)

FTC issues 300-page report on IP marketplace; provides over 50 recommendations for improving patent system (Peter Zura’s 271 Patent Blog)

Is the claim term ‘at least about’ indefinite? (Docket Report)

False marking lawsuits are real problem for business and make little sense when applied to expired patents (IP Asset Maximizer Blog)

USPTO symposium March 11 to bring together women inventors and entrepreneurs (Director’s Forum)

Deciding whether to stay a case pending reexamination (Reexamination Alert)

US Patents – Decisions

CAFC: ABB v Cooper – The broad scope of declaratory judgment jurisdiction (Patently-O)

District Court Ohio rules false marking statute unconstitutional: Unique Product Solutions v. Hy-Grade Valve (Patent Law Practice Center)

US Patents – Lawsuits and strategic steps

Tianrui – CAFC to hear oral argument in Tianrui appeal 10 March (ITC 337 Law Blog)

US Copyright

Is the national anthem a stolen British drinking song? (Copyright Litigation Blog)

US Copyright – Lawsuits and strategic steps

Golan – Supremes to decide if public domain works can be re-copyrighted (ArsTechnica) (Patently-O)

Survivor – Eye of the Tiger: Survivor survives motion to dismiss in copyright royalties dispute: Sullivan dba Survivor v Jamison (Chicago Intellectual Property Law Blog)

US Trade Marks – Decisions

District Court E D Pennsylvania concludes vendor cannot claim exclusive rights to ‘A Taste of Philadelphia’ despite federal trademark registration: R J Ants LLC v Marinelli Enterprises, Inc (IP Spotlight)

TTAB precedential No 7: ZU ELEMENTS not confusingly similar to ELEMENT for overlapping goods (TTABlog)

TTAB affirms refusal of BENCH VAC for vacuum cleaners due to applicant’s failure to comply with request for information (TTABlog)

TTAB dismisses CAKE DIVAS opposition as applicant proves priority via analogous trademark use (TTABlog)

TTAB finds NAPA FOODS primarily geographically deceptively misdescriptive for food (TTABlog)

US Trade Marks – Lawsuits and strategic steps

Ford – Ford withdraws trademark lawsuit against Ferrari over its F150 mark (IPKat)