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Selected cases

Federal Court of Australia · [2026] FCA 481

Deakin University v Macreadie

A Federal Court IP case about a departing academic, the Blue Carbon Lab name, goodwill, trade mark ownership and employee-created brand assets.

Federal Court of Australia24 Apr 2026

Plain-English explainers, not legal advice. Check the linked official source before you rely on a specific section, and get advice for your situation.

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Quick read

  • If a founder, employee or researcher builds a brand while using the business's resources, contracts, people and public identity, the goodwill may belong to the business.
  • A Federal Court IP case about a departing academic, the Blue Carbon Lab name, goodwill, trade mark ownership and employee-created brand assets.

Use this to check

  • Goodwill can belong to the business even where a key person was central to creating and promoting the brand.
  • Trade mark filings should match the true owner of the brand and goodwill.
  • Employee-created names, logos, websites and lab identities need clear IP and employment documentation.

Decision snapshot

  1. 1

    What happened

    • Deakin University brought proceedings against Professor Peter Macreadie and Blue Carbon Lab Pty Ltd after Professor Macreadie left Deakin.
    • The dispute concerned the Blue Carbon Lab name, logo, goodwill and trade mark applications.
    • Professor Macreadie was a marine science academic who had worked at Deakin from 2016 to 2024, and the Blue Carbon Lab had been promoted for years as a Deakin research group.
    • Deakin said the respondents should be restrained from representing that the company owned the relevant Blue Carbon Lab intellectual property and trade marks, and sought rectification of the trade mark register.
  2. 2

    What the court had to decide

    • The Federal Court had to decide whether Deakin, rather than the departing professor or his company, owned the goodwill associated with the Blue Carbon Lab name and marks, whether proposed representations would contravene the Australian Consumer Law, and whether the trade mark register should be rectified on ownership or bad faith grounds.
  3. 3

    What the court decided

    • The Court held that Deakin was entitled to permanent injunctions under the Australian Consumer Law and rectification of the trade mark register on the basis that the company was not the owner of the mark.
    • The Court rejected the bad faith ground, accepting that a mistaken belief in entitlement was not enough for bad faith on the facts.
    • Final orders were to be settled after the reasons.

Practical impact

Practical read

  • If a founder, employee or researcher builds a brand while using the business's resources, contracts, people and public identity, the goodwill may belong to the business.
  • IP ownership needs to be documented before a departure turns into a fight over the name.

Useful next steps

  • Goodwill can belong to the business even where a key person was central to creating and promoting the brand.
  • Trade mark filings should match the true owner of the brand and goodwill.
  • Employee-created names, logos, websites and lab identities need clear IP and employment documentation.
  • A mistaken belief in ownership may not be bad faith, but it can still fail if the applicant is not the owner.
  • Make employees and contractors assign IP created for the business.

Practical read

This is one of the better recent cases for founders, universities, agencies and any business where a key person builds a brand from inside the organisation. The human version is easy to understand: a person may feel they founded or grew the brand, but the business may say the goodwill was built through its employment relationship, resources, contracts and public identity.

The Court accepted Deakin's core position. The Blue Carbon Lab name and marks had been used for years as part of Deakin's business and research activity. The goodwill did not simply walk out the door with the departing academic. That matters for startups and small businesses because the same pattern can appear with product names, studio brands, research labs, social accounts, client-facing teams and side ventures.

The safest move is boring but powerful. Employment contracts, contractor agreements, founder IP assignments, brand guidelines, website ownership, domain control and trade mark filings should all point in the same direction before anyone leaves. If the documents are vague, the dispute becomes expensive and fact-heavy.

Checks to run

Key points

  • Make employees and contractors assign IP created for the business.
  • Check who pays for design work, domains, websites, trade mark filings and brand assets.
  • Keep brand guidelines and public pages consistent about who owns and operates the brand.
  • Review trade mark ownership before a founder, academic, contractor or senior employee exits.
  • Document any side-project permission before the project builds external reputation.

Key takeaways

  • Goodwill can belong to the business even where a key person was central to creating and promoting the brand.
  • Trade mark filings should match the true owner of the brand and goodwill.
  • Employee-created names, logos, websites and lab identities need clear IP and employment documentation.
  • A mistaken belief in ownership may not be bad faith, but it can still fail if the applicant is not the owner.

Related topics

IP & Brand ProtectionEmployment & WorkplaceContracts & Commercial

How Sprintlaw can help

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