The wordings of Article 7(1)(f) EUTMR (for ease of reference: ‘trade marks which is contry to public policy or to accepted principles of moral’) and the Danish equivalent – Section 14(1)(1) of the Danish Consolidate Trade Marks Act – are very broad and allow much room for interpretation. A judicious application of this provision necessarily…
The Fourth Board of Appeal (BoA) of the EUIPO has once again been told off by the General Court (GC). In its decision of 6 June 2018 (case T-803/16), the GC decided that the BoA was not competent to rule upon the question of genuine use of its own motion in inter partes proceedings if…
The General Court annulled a decision by the Second Board of Appeal of EUIPO, based on an insufficient (or, rather, inexistent) assessment of the reputation claimed by the opponent (GC, 1 June 2018, T‑900/16, only available in Spanish and French). The case concerned largely identical marks– DAYADAY in slightly different stylization – on both sides…
CJEU, 30 May 2018, C-85/16 P, C-86/16 P – Kenzo Tsujimoto v. EUIPO / Kenzo [KENZO ESTATE] The fame of the fashion brand KENZO is such that it can be held against the registration of KENZO ESTATE as an EUTM for wines and “western liquors” and for services that are or could be ancillary…
In a judgement of April 2018, the Regional Court of Hamburg has ruled on the use of original advertising material by non-authorized dealers and on how trademark law can bypass copyright law (308 O 231/16). The plaintiff manufactures saddle bags and other high quality cycling accessories. The defendant is an online retailer with numerous online…
Student Union Lettings Limited v Essex Student Lets Limited [2018] EWHC 419 (IPEC) The UK Intellectual Enterprise Court has ruled that Essex Student Lets Limited, a student accommodation letting company, has fallen foul of trade mark infringement and passing-off, courtesy of their use of the mark “SU LETS”. Background The Defendant in…
Cour de Cassation, Chambre Commerciale, January 31, 2018, Appeal No. C 16-10.761 The French Supreme Court emphasizes that the reputation of the earlier mark is a relevant factor in the assessment of likelihood of confusion and gives it wider protection. In 2009, adidas initiated an infringement action in France relying on its famous three stripes…
The federal district court in Los Angeles did not err in dismissing trademark infringement, dilution, and related claims brought by Ketab Corporation—a telephone directory and marketing services to the Iranian community in the Los Angeles area—against a competing directory service provider, an Iranian television channel, a law firm, and others involved in providing services to…
In a recent judgement, the Swiss Federal Administrative Court once again confirmed its (too) strict position with regard to the registration of shape marks. The court ruled that a three-dimensional mark consisting of the graphical background of a popular chocolate bar’s packaging could not be registered since the design was not perceived as an indication…
The issue of registration of state names as trademarks has recently been the subject of a Paris Court of Appeal ruling (22 September 2017). The US company France.com Inc. was the proprietor of the domain name “france.com” registered since 1994. The Dutch company Traveland Resorts registered in its own name a number of…
