Unlawful to reuse trademarked containers?
The ECJ is to decide whether reuse of packaging bearing a competitor’s brand is trademark infringement.
Czechs win Budweiser name in Europe
The dispute over the Budweiser name in Europe is now over. The European Court of Justice upheld the opposition by the Czech company Budějovický Budvar to an application by the American company Anheuser-Busch to register the Budweiser trademark for beer.
Correspondence with in-house lawyer not covered by attorney-client privilege
Wymiana korespondencji w ramach przedsiębiorstwa lub grupy przedsiębiorstw z prawnikami wewnętrznymi nie jest objęta tajemnicą informacji wymienianych między adwokatem a klientem, orzekł ETS w sprawie Akzo Nobel.
How long is a bank liable for the act of an employee?
If bank staff commit an offence to the detriment of a bank customer, the bank is liable for failure to supervise the employee.
Is it legal to use someone else's trademark in Internet advertising?
Use of other people’s trademarks as keywords may constitute trademark infringement if it is done without consent of the holder and the advertising steered to by the keywords may suggest legal or commercial ties between the advertiser and the holder.
Class actions
The Act on Enforcement of Claims in a Group Proceeding went into effect on 19 July 2010. The act introduces the institution of the class action, not previously recognised under Polish law.
May products be marked with national symbols?
Polish national symbols, such as the coat of arms (a white eagle with a golden crown on a red background), the red and white flag, and the national anthem (Dąbrowski’s Mazurka), enjoy special legal protection.
A DNA sequence alone does not merit patent protection
The holder of a patent may not prohibit trade in products containing a patented DNA sequence if the sequence does not perform the function for which it was patented.
Someone else's trademark in a domain name?
Internet domain names should be registered in a way that respects prior rights.
Another gambling case
An EU member state may prohibit promotion and advertising of gambling services provided by enterprises from other member states, but may not apply discriminatory sanctions for violating the ban.
Sales of samples and testers infringes trademark rights
A trademark holder may prohibit sale of brand samples and testers if the holder reserves title to the items and expressly indicates that they are not for sale, the European Court of Justice held on 3 June 2010.
Beware: not every infringement of a renowned brand is actionable
The court may refuse to find unfair competition even if the grounds are met, if the facts in the case show that the holder of a renowned trademark did not take action against infringements for an extended time.
