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TM-Conqueror: Trademark law in Germany, Europe and the World

trademark application, trade mark infringement, German trademark law, EU trademarks, IR, national trademark protection, trademark analysis, trademark portfolio management

trademark law

Are all sign eligible for protection as a trademark?

As it is most of the times, you will find the answer in the German Trademark Act. According to Section 3, the signs eligible for protection as trade marks are: (1) All signs, particularly words including personal names, designs, letters, numerals, sounds, three-dimensional designs, the shape of goods or of their packaging as well as […]

Trademark: Terms of Renewal

Trademark´s Renewal Terms of protection: 3 Things To Know     1. After the Trademark Law Reform  In the case of a trademark registered as of 01/14/2019, the term of protection begins on the day following the filing of the application and ends at the end of the day corresponding to the day of filing […]

EUIPO´s Judgement on the world trademark “Think Different”

Dispute on the apple/swatch slogan “Think Different” and the importance of trademark protection Judgment of 08.06.2022; Ref. T-26/21; T-27/21 and T-28/21 In the following judgment of EUIPO in joined cases T-26/21, T-27/21 and T-28/21, the Luxembourg judges ruled in favour  of  Swatch. The watch manufacturer had applied to the European Trade Mark Office in 2016 […]

Trademark Maintenance

Trademark maintenance: what happens after you have registered your trademark? It’s done! You have successfully registered your trademark. Congratulations. Your trademark now enjoys protection under trademark law. Once your trade mark has been registered, you might think that your work is done but unfortunately, we have to contradict this. Trademark protection is only of use […]

BGH Eastern Decision on the Lindt Gold Bunny

BGH Decision on trademark protection of the gold tone of the Lindt gold chocolate bunny Federal Supreme Court, Judgment of 29.07.2021 – I ZR 139/20 – Gold tone of the Lindt Gold Bunny enjoys trade mark protection – Let’s have a look at this interesting BGH, German Federal Supreme Court.  The Federal Supreme Court has […]

Registering the name of an independent state: Andorra’s case

Andorra – the independent state : Bureaucracy problems The Principality of Andorra is not allowed to register its own name as a Union trademark.  The government of the small principality is not allowed to protect the name “ANDORRA” as a Union trademark. The figurative sign should be used for marketing various goods and services. But that was recently […]

Certification trademark

In contrast to the individual trade mark, this new trade mark category focuses on the guarantee function; that means that it is not about distinguishing the goods or services of a particular manufacturer or supplier from those of another manufacturer or supplier (as in the case of the individual trade mark), but about certifying a […]

Trademark law absolute grounds for refusal

The DPMA examines the trade mark application for absolute grounds for refusal. Absolute grounds for refusal are for example: lack of distinctiveness descriptive terms that must be kept freely available for general use danger of deceiving the public an emblem of state included in the trade mark offence against public policy or accepted principles of […]

What are trademarks?

As a rule, a trade mark is used to identify the goods and/or services of an enterprise. Signs suitable for distinguishing goods and/or services of an enterprise from those of another enterprise can be protected as trade marks. These can be, for example, words, letters, numbers, images, but also colours, holograms, multimedia signs and sounds. […]

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