Monthly Archives: November 2025

Reversal of Burden of Proof in Patent Infringement: The Curious Case of Singapore’s Implementation of Article 34 of the TRIPS Agreement

Intellectual Property, International Law

While the TRIPS Agreement is widely known for setting substantive standards of intellectual property (IP) protection, less attention is paid to its few procedural provisions. Among them is Article 34, which addresses the burden of proof in civil proceedings concerning infringement of process patents. Article 34 introduces a limited reversal of the usual rule that places the burden of proof on the party asserting a fact. Instead, in certain process patent infringement cases, the burden shifts to the defendant.

This blog post summarises my recent article published in the Singapore Academy of Law Journal, which unpacks the raison d’être for Article 34, critiques Singapore’s curious implementation of Article 34 and proposes reform to the Singapore provision.

Remote Lockouts in PAYGo-Solar – How to Approach the Regulatory Dilemma

Contract Law

Advances in financial and consumer technology have changed the way we consume goods and services. New, digital business models have not just pushed out existing ones (Spotify killed the CD), they have also created markets that had practically not existed before (Airbnb opened many doors that otherwise would have stayed shut). By creating new markets, such businesses have given consumers access to goods and services that may improve their lives significantly – but they have also exposed them to novel risks. From a regulatory perspective this raises a fundamental dilemma: risks call for regulation, yet regulation might kill the business model and thereby cut off consumers from the goods and services offered. In our chapter ‘When the Lights Go Out – Remote-Lockout-Technology in Sustainable Pay-As-You-Go-Products’ in Sustainable Digital Finance (edited by Ingrid-Gabriela Hoven, Soh Young In and Thomas Puschmann), Professor Sebastian Omlor and I analyse this dilemma, looking at a case where the digital and sustainable transformation of our economies intersect: remote lockouts in PAYGo-products, especially PAYGo-solar.

Reforming the Law of Severance: The Modern Case for Abolition of Equitable Joint Tenancies

Property Law

My article, published this year in the Law Quarterly Review, forms part of my wider research agenda examining historical and contemporary challenges to property and land law. This article focuses on the reform to the law of severance, and how an examination of the discrete avenues for reform highlighted serves as a catalyst to make the modern case for abolition of equitable joint tenancies in English and Welsh property law.