Judgment of the General Court (Ninth Chamber) of 8 September 2016

Data

Court: General Court

Case date: 8 september 2016

Verdict

Judgment of the General Court (Ninth Chamber) of 8 September 2016 —

Dr Vita v EUIPO (69)

(Case T‑360/15)

"EU trade mark - Application for EU figurative mark 69 - Absolute ground for refusal - Descriptive character - Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 207/2009"

EU trade markDefinition and acquisition of the EU trade markAbsolute grounds for refusalMarks composed exclusively of signs or indications capable of designating the characteristics of a product or serviceAimNeed to preserve availability (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 7(1)(c)) (see para. 12)

EU trade markDefinition and acquisition of the EU trade markAbsolute grounds for refusalMarks composed exclusively of signs or indications capable of designating the characteristics of a product or serviceConcept (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paras 13, 14, 26)

EU trade markDecisions of the OfficePrinciple of equal treatmentPrinciple of sound administrationEUIPO’s previous decision-making practicePrinciple of legality (see para. 30)

EU trade markDefinition and acquisition of the EU trade markRefusal of registration based on one of the absolute grounds for refusal set out in Article 7(1) of Regulation No 207/2009Whether sufficient (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 7(1)) (see para. 33)

EU trade markDefinition and acquisition of the EU trade markAbsolute grounds for refusalOverlap between the scope of the grounds for refusal set out in subparagraphs (b) and (c) of Article 7(1) of Regulation No 207/2009 (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 7(1)(b) and (c)) (see para. 35)

Re:

ACTION brought against the decision of the Fifth Board of Appeal of EUIPO of 1 April 2015 (Case R 2513/2014-5), relating to an application for registration of the figurative sign 69 as an EU trade mark.

Operative part

The Court:

Dismisses the action;
Orders Dr Vita sp. z o.o. to pay the costs.