In Denmark – as in the EU – it is possible to overcome an absolute ground for refusal based on non-distinctive character of the mark applied for if the applicant is able to provide proof that the mark applied for has acquired distinctive character through use prior to the application date, see Article 7(3) EUTMR…
The panel remanded an award of attorney fees and prejudgment interest based on its new precedent on what makes for an “exceptional” case for purposes of Section 35 of the Lanham Act. The U.S. Circuit Court in New York City has upheld a lower court determination that retailer New York & Company’s infringement of women’s…
What are the limits as regards the use of a well-known trademark to promote a contest? In two similar circumstances, two Spanish courts have reached different conclusions. In this article, we will analyze the circumstances of the legal proceedings and the dissonant approach taken by the Spanish courts: INDITEX v BUONGIORNO In this case, the…
In a recent ruling from 15 August 2019 (BS-6392/2019 SHR) the Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court found that the conditions for issuing a preliminary injunction against the clothing company Message A/S (Message) had not been fulfilled since the alleged infringement did not constitute a sufficient basis for issuing a preliminary injunction. According to the…
Mall operators had actual or constructive knowledge of tenants’ infringement, including prior law enforcement raids and eyewear maker Luxottica’s notifications of trademark infringement. A jury properly found that owners and landlords of the International Discount Mall in College Park, Georgia, had at least constructive knowledge that subtenants were infringing Luxottica Group’s Ray-Ban and Oakley marks…
The German Federal Supreme Court recently ruled that the use of only one trademark in search engine advertisements by Amazon was trademark infringing when the underlying link led to a list of offers that included not only products offered under that brand but also those of third parties (Decision of the Federal Supreme Court of…
On 29 July 2019, the European Court of Justice (CJEU) handed down a ruling that ended a six-year battle over the validity of trademark rights in the name of Red Bull to the combination of the colours blue and silver (EUTM nos. 9417668 and 2534774) (C‑124/18 P). The CJEU dismissed Red Bull’s appeal and confirmed…
A licensor’s failure to disclose in discovery an agreement acknowledging that a third party owned the mark was properly sanctioned. Two beach merchandise retailers asserting rights to use the mark “WINGS” in connection with their stores will have to go to trial to sort out their competing rights, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Richmond…
On 22 July 2019, the Second Board of Appeal at EUIPO issued a decision partially invalidating the EUTM ‘MONOPOLY’. The reason for the invalidation was that the Board considered the EUTM proprietor to have been in bad faith when it filed the application for the EUTM insofar as it included goods and services already covered…
Some (among whom, the truly yours) wondered, when in late June the US Supreme Court held unconstitutional the Lanham Act provision (15 U. S. C. §1052(a)) prohibiting registration of trademarks consisting of or comprising immoral or scandalous matter because it discriminates on the basis of viewpoint and therefore violates the free speech clause[1], whether freedom…
