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Sieckmann v Deutsches Patent [2002] C-273/00

By Oxbridge Law TeamUpdated 04/01/2024 07:13

Judgement for the case Sieckmann v Deutsches Patent

  • Claimant sought to register trademark described as a ‘balsamically fruity odour with a slight hint of cinnamon’.

  • When making application, Claimant also deposited its chemical breakdown and a sample of odour in a container to German Trade Mark office.

  • Issue was whether an intangible sign may be registered.

  • Held:

‘Graphic Representation’

  1. As per Article 2:

    1. Trade mark may consist of something not capable of being perceived visually

    2. but only provided it can be REPRESENTED GRAPHICALLY

  2. This graphic representation must allow the sign to be represented visually (so that it can be precisely identified in trade mark registry.

  3. This representation usually done via images, lines or characters

  4. Any graphic representation must be:

    1. Clear, 

    2. Precise, 

    3. Self-contained, 

    4. Easily accessible, 

    5. Intelligible, 

    6. Durable, 

    7. Objective.

‘Facts’

  • On facts, Claimant had not given adequate graphic representation of odour it wished to register.

    • Neither a chemical formula, description of odour nor a sample of odour is sufficiently clear and precise to constitute a graphic representation

    • As these are not sufficiently precise.

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Intellectual Property Law Notes
446 total pages
22 purchased

My notes cover all the main cases in intellectual property law. They a...