LATEST EUROPEAN TRADE MARK CASE REPORTS

The May 2005 issue of the European Intellectual Property Review has now emerged, a little early. It special focus is on the registrability of so-called “non-traditional” trade marks, with cases from the European Court of Justice, the Court of First Instance, OHIM, England and France. Of particular interest are the following decisions:

A Honda masquerading as a Lambo: this is why CTM
registration was sought

* Lamborghini’s application to register as a Community trade mark a “movement mark” consisting of the way its car doors opened;

* Bongrain’s attempt to colonise the shape of one of its cheeses in the UK;

* The final round of Mag’s battle to register its torch shapes as Community trade marks on the basis of inherent, rather than acquired, distinctiveness;

* The fate of the distinctive-because-ultralong word mark UNIVERSALKOMMUNIKATIONSVERZEICHNIS …

The European Intellectual Property Review is published monthly by Sweet & Maxwell.