Sign consisting ‘exclusively’ of the shape of goods which is necessary to obtain a technical result: condition is fulfilled when all the essential characteristics of a shape perform a technical function, the presence of nonessential characteristics with no technical function being irrelevant in that context. Shape...

No similarity because of different overall impression of mark "Creaciones Kennya". Conduct of applicant not relevant in case of opposition ex article 8 TM Reg. Where there is no similarity the reputation or goodwill of older mark is irrelevant. Similarity required for taking unfair advantage of or being detrimental to...

Transitional law Supplementary Protection Certificate: No SPC available for products for which a Community authorisation to place that product on the market as a medicinal product was obtained more than six months before the accession of the Republic of Lithuania acceded to the European Union, but for which product did...

Trade Mark Law - Litigation -  Agency competent to require proof that an earlier mark has been renewed, but proof that an earlier mark has been renewed won’t be given spontaneously. New plea which extends the subject-matter of the dispute cannot be introduced in appeal

Stricter penalties for promoting foreign gambling precluded: that Article 49 EC must be interpreted as precluding legislation of a Member State subjecting gambling to a system of exclusive rights, according to which the promotion of gambling organised in another Member State is subject to stricter penalties than the...

Use of key word infringing in case of adverse effect on the function of indicating origin. Use prohibited by article 5 will generally not be in accordance with honest practices in industrial or commercial matters. Exhaustion: Use of mark permitted unless there is a legitimate reason.

Patent protection DNA-sequence limited to circumstances in which it performs the patented function: not conferring patent right protection in circumstances such as those of the case in the main proceedings, in which the patented product is contained in the soy meal, where it does not perform the function for which it...

Assesment of conceptual similarity: the General Court erred in law in basing its assessment of the conceptual similarity of the marks on general considerations taken from the case-law without analysing all the relevant factors specific to the case, in disregard of the requirement of an overall assessment of the...

Design law: Made available to the public at trade fair and in specialised press: Informed user - no technical expert: With regard to the interpretation of the concept of informed user, the status of ‘user’ implies that the person concerned uses the product in which the design is incorporated, in accordance with the...

Trademark law: Inherently distinctive character unsubstantiated: there is nothing to suggest that any commercial success of the applicant would have been due to the fact that the orange colouring of the toes of the socks which it manufactures would have been perceived by the relevant public as being inherently...

Exclusive license limiting freedom to provide services – for national court to determine. Blocking access to internet site for Dutch residents is an indispensible element. ational court not required to determine compatability of implementing measure in each case. Prohibition on legitimate foreign operator from offering...

Prohibition on legitimate foreign operator from offering games of chance via the internet: therefore, the answer to the first question is that Article 49 EC must be interpreted as not precluding legislation of a Member State, such as the legislation at issue in the main proceedings, under which exclusive rights to...

Consent – exhaustion – not likely in case of perfume testers with a prohibition on sale: In circumstances such as those of the main proceedings, where ‘perfume testers’ are made available, without transfer of ownership and with a prohibition on sale, to intermediaries who are contractually bound to the trade mark...

Bad faith EU-domain name registration: must be interpreted as meaning that bad faith can be established by circumstances other than those listed in Article 21(3)(a) to (e) of that regulation.That, in order to assess whether there is conduct in bad faith within the meaning of Article 21(1)(b) of Regulation No 874/2004...

G 4/88. Transferability of pending opposition proceedings: An opposition pending before the European Patent Office may be transferred or assigned to a third party as part of the opponent's business assets together with the assets in the interests of which the opposition was filed.

A species is composed of its different varieties: The very nature of a ‘species’ is that it is composed of its different varieties and, for this reason, a detailed description of such a species cannot be detached from the varieties which it comprises. Limited review to determine variety lacking distinctness.

Right of withdrawal: consumer may not be charged with the cost of delivering the goods: Article 6(1) and Article 6(2) of Directive 97/7/EC must be interpreted as precluding national legislation which allows the supplier under a distance contract to charge the costs of delivering the goods to the consumer where the...

Permissible restriction of the transfer on succession of the resale right to the artist's heirs: Article 6(1) of Directive 2001/84 must be interpreted as not precluding a provision of national law which reserves the benefit of the resale right to the artist’s heirs at law alone, to the exclusion of testa-mentary...