Protecting Intellectual Property Rights in Gardening Business

Patents

Mags is a well-known and respected New Zealand garden expert. She recently invented a new weed killer which she would like to arrange to have manufactured and sold commercially. Mags has been wondering what legal steps she should take to protect her invention. Mags also writes a regular column of gardening advice which is published in a national newspaper. She also owns a small shop from which she sells the high-quality gardening tools she regularly recommends in her gardening advice column, each with a small image of a magpie bird on the handle. Recently, John set up a website from which he sells poor-quality gardening tools each with an image of a magpie bird on the handle. John has also, without permission, reproduced several Mag’s newspaper columns on this website. Mags is very angry as she believes that John is trying to profit from her reputation. She wants him to take her newspaper columns off his website and she wants him to remove the picture of the magpie bird from the handles of poor-quality gardening tools he sells. She also wonders if there is anything she can do to prevent other people using the image of a magpie on gardening tools, in future. Required: Explain the intellectual property laws Mags could use to protect her business interests, both now, and in the future. You do not need to use ILAC in your answer. In your answer you should refer to: ? Patents ? Copyright ? Passing off and the Fair Trading Act 1986 ? Trademarks