Software patents – the lines of communication are no clearer – Technology Law Update

Posted November 19th, 2014 in appeals, computer programs, EC law, news, patents by sally

‘Patents for computer programmes are not patentable in Europe. That seems like a simple statement. But a recent high level decision shows that it is far from simple to apply.’

Full story

Technology Law Update, 18th November 2014

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

Software Patents – Lantana v The Comptroller – NIPC Law

Posted November 18th, 2014 in appeals, computer programs, intellectual property, news, patents by sally

‘Lantana Ltd. (“Lantana”) is a California company that offers communication cable services, telephone systems and services and computer and data network services mainly to customers in Southern California. One of the company’s employees invented a “method, systems, and computer program products for retrieving a file of machine readable data” for which Lantana applied for patents in the USA and around the world under the Patent Co-operation Treaty.’

Full story

NIPC Law, 17th November 2014

Source: www.nipclaw.blogspot.co.uk

Bring Your Own Device – Managing The Risks – Littleton Chambers

‘On 6 October 2014, the Government published new guidance on BYOD (‘Bring Your Own Device’) which highlights the fact that allowing employees to use their own technology at work is not just a technical issue that needs to be grappled with by IT departments, but has wide-ranging implications for employers.’

Full story

Littleton Chambers, 13th November 2014

Source: www.littletonchambers.com

UK legalises music, film and e-book back-ups – BBC News

Posted October 2nd, 2014 in artistic works, computer programs, copyright, intellectual property, news by tracey

‘A law has come into effect that permits UK citizens to make copies of CDs, MP3s, DVDs, Blu-rays and e-books. Consumers are allowed to keep the duplicates on local storage or in the cloud. While it is legal to make back-ups for personal use, it remains an offence to share the data with friends or family.’

Full story

BBC News, 1st October 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

ICO needs to rethink how to tackle mobile apps privacy failings, says expert – OUT-LAW.com

‘The UK’s data protection authority needs to rethink its strategy for combatting failings in mobile apps privacy, an expert has said.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 12th September 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

Innes v Information Commissioner and another – WLR Daily

Innes v Information Commissioner and another [2014] EWCA 1086; [2014] WLR (D) 358

‘Under section 11(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 a claimant requesting information under section 1(1) of the 2000 Act was entitled to stipulate what software format should be used when the information sought was provided to him.’

WLR Daily, 31st July 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Transforming the criminal justice system: strategy and action plan – Ministry of Justice

Posted July 16th, 2014 in computer programs, criminal justice, delay, reports, victims, witnesses by tracey

‘The “Criminal justice system 2014 to 2015: strategy and action plan” is an update on the version published last year.’

Full text

Ministry of Justice, 15th July 2014

Source: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice

Probation service in chaos as systems wipe offenders’ data – The Independent

‘Britain’s probation service is in chaos after a series of crippling computer failures over the past three weeks, with thousands of offenders’ case files lost, frozen or wiped.’

Full story

The Independent, 22nd June 2014

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Lord Chief Justice speech: IT for the Courts – Creating a digital future – Judiciary of England and Wales

‘The Right Hon. The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales speech at the Society for Computers and Law Annual Lecture.’

Full speech

Judiciary of England & Wales, 29th May 2014

Source: www.judiciary.gov.uk

Researchers given ‘data mining’ right under new UK copyright laws – OUT-LAW.com

‘Copying content from online journals or other texts for the purposes of non-commercial research is no longer an infringement of UK copyright laws providing copiers have lawful access to that content and they, generally, make “a sufficient acknowledgement” of the original work.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 2nd June 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

LCJ: “Once in a lifetime” chance to build proper court IT system – Litigation Futures

Posted May 21st, 2014 in budgets, computer programs, courts, internet, judiciary, news by tracey

‘The Lord Chief Justice has said the country has a “once in a lifetime” opportunity to build a proper court IT system, and failing to make a success of it would be a “disaster”. In a strongly-worded speech highly critical of previous court IT failures, Lord Thomas said that if the Courts Service and the judiciary squandered the £300-£400m promised by the Treasury, it would “not be forgotten” and “we would not be given that money again”.’

Full story

Litigation Futures, 21st May 2014

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Gambling regulator to issue guidance on ‘gambling software’ after imposing new licensing conditions on its supply – OUT-LAW.com

Posted May 7th, 2014 in codes of practice, computer programs, gambling, licensing, news by sally

‘Remote gambling operators in Great Britain (GB) will be forced to ensure that they source their gambling software from a GB licensed provider to remain compliant with a new licensing regime being brought into force.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 6th May 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

No implied copyright licence following takeover, rules Court of Appeal – OUT-LAW.com

Posted April 15th, 2014 in appeals, computer programs, copyright, documents, forgery, licensing, news by tracey

‘A businessman who forged a document and lied about its authenticity has won a legal battle against a major financial institution over copyright.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 15th April 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

ICO urges app developers to respect users’ privacy – RPC Privacy Law

‘The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published guidance aimed at helping mobile app developers comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) and ensure that the privacy of app users is protected.’

Full story

RPC Privacy Law, 11th April 2014

Source: www.rpc.co.uk

Information held in electronic databases not property which can be possessed, rules UK court – OUT-LAW.com

Posted March 20th, 2014 in appeals, computer programs, data protection, news, publishing by tracey

‘Information stored electronically does not constitute property which someone can exercise possession of, judges in the UK have ruled.’

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 20th March 2014

Source: www.out-law.com

Your Response Ltd v Datateam Business Media Ltd – WLR Daily

Posted March 18th, 2014 in appeals, computer programs, data protection, fees, law reports, publishing by tracey

Your Response Ltd v Datateam Business Media Ltd: [2014] EWCA Civ 281;   [2014] WLR (D)  131

‘The exercise of a common law lien was not available over an electronic database as the electronic database was not property susceptible of possession which was capable of being subject to larceny or conversion or being taken in execution.’

WLR Daily, 14th March 2014

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Vidal-Hall v Google – cookies can cause distress – Technology Law Update

‘A recent decision in the English High Court about internet cookie use has been making waves.’

Full story

Technology Law Update, 5th February 2014

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

Two-month deadline over in-app charges – BBC News

Posted January 30th, 2014 in computer programs, consumer protection, news, telecommunications by sally

‘Creators of mobile apps that promote in-app purchases are being given two months to comply with Office of Fair Trading guidelines’

Full story

BBC News, 30th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Man jailed for refusing to give police USB stick password – BBC News

Posted January 16th, 2014 in computer programs, encryption, fraud, news, sentencing, terrorism by tracey

‘A man has been jailed for refusing to give police the password to a memory stick that they could not crack. Syed Hussain, 22, from Luton, was convicted of failing to provide police with the password to the stick seized in a counter-terrorism operation.’

Full story

BBC News, 15th January 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The Shortcomings of Computer-Generated Exhibits – Criminal Law and Justice Weekly

Posted December 9th, 2013 in computer programs, evidence, juries, news by sally

‘Guidelines should be given on the use of computer-generated exhibits, Dr Gareth Norris writes.’

Full story

Criminal Law and Justice Weekly,

Source: www.criminallawandjustice.co.uk