In conjunction with MARQUES, this weblog is holding a Rapid Response seminar, "Future Plans: next steps for trade marks in Europe", which will review the long-awaited Study on the Overall Functioning of the European Trade Mark System.

Further details of this study, presented to the European Commission by the Max Planck Institute for Intellectual Property and Competition Law, can be found here.

The "Future Plans" seminar will be held on the afternoon of Tuesday 5 April. It will provide a forum in which the contents of this study can be considered and discussed by trade mark experts and enthusiasts from all sides of the subject – owners, licensees, practitioners, administrators, academics and others. Doors open for registration at 2pm; the seminar begins at 2.30pm and closes at 5.30pm, followed by a reception.

The seminar is being kindly hosted in the London office of Simmons & Simmons and it is expected that CPD points will be available for those requiring them. Admission will be free.

Participants who have already been confirmed include Jeremy Phillips, trade mark attorney Richard Ashmead, Appointed Person and solicitor Anna Carboni and MARQUES Council Member David Stone.

The full programme will be published soon. In the meantime, if you want to register to attend this event, please email Jeremy here with the subject line "Future Plans". If you have already emailed to indicate your interest in attending, the completed programme will be sent to you as soon as it's available.