The body of law drawn from the precedents set by earlier decisions.
Yet another Feta case has reached the European Court of Justice (ECJ). This time the question is whether the Kingdom of Denmark is obliged to stop Danish cheese producers from using the protected designation of origin (PDO) Feta for cheese exported to third countries. Historically production and export of cheese under the name Feta existed…
The Ninth Circuit clarified that the first sale doctrine was not meant to be limited to purchasers who do no more than stock, display, and resell a producer’s product. In a trademark infringement suit involving the use of Bluetooth technology in Fiat Chrysler vehicles, the Ninth Circuit in an interlocutory appeal reversed a Washington district…
The General Court (GC) recently overturned a decision from the EUIPO that an opposition based on earlier UK unregistered rights be rejected as, following the withdrawal of the UK from the EU, opponents could no longer rely upon the rules governing common law actions of passing off in EU oppositions. In this case, Jungo Ye…
On 4 March 2021, the Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court (the Court) issued a decision between Mads Heindorf Jewellery (Mads Heindorf) and the company Heindorf Diamonds. The dispute regarded the jeweler Mads Heindorf’s trademark for the word “Heindorf”, which was asserted infringed by Heindorf Diamonds’ use of the name “Heindorf Diamonds” in relation to…
The Madrid Protocol makes it possible to extend protections from an international registration to the United States. A United States District Court has just cautioned practitioners that they must satisfy the intent to use requirements for all United States trademark applications before availing themselves of this tool. A recent contest between Oatly AB and D’s…
The jury instruction improperly stated that the plaintiff was required to show willfulness for an award of profits. Jury instructions given during a trial over whether a whale-watching company and its affiliates violated the Lanham Act by engaging in materially false or misleading advertising about their business failed to recite the correct legal standard, the…
In January 2020, Volkswagen (VW, the Opponent) filed an opposition against this trade mark application, alleging a likelihood of confusion with its earlier 3D shape registrations . The Applicant’s mark covered camping vehicles and camping equipment and VW’s earlier marks cover broad vehicle and furniture terms. The opposition was initially dismissed by the EUIPO…
The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) properly refused to register the mark “.SUCKS,” in standard characters and a stylized pixelated font, for failure to function as mark for the applicant’s domain name registry operator services, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled. Substantial evidence supported the Board’s finding that consumers…
This case ABP Technology Ltd v Voyetra Turtle Beach, Inc. & Anor (Rev1) [2021] – EWHC 3096 (Ch) (19 November 2021) concerns two parties using highly similar/identical marks (STEALTH) on identical goods. This article discusses some key takeaway points arising from their dispute, as well as the tactics that the parties used. Both parties were involved…
Traditional limitations on trademarking a personal name give way to free speech interests when it comes to prominent public officials. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board violated the First Amendment rights of a trademark applicant when it denied registration to his t-shirt that disparaged former President Trump, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal…
