A judge in the High Court has upheld a UK IPO opposition ruling regarding Unilever’s application to register the trade mark WONDER MUM for goods including soaps, perfumery and hair care products in class 3. The opposition is discussed here. The application was opposed by DC Comics on the basis of its earlier EU trade mark for WONDER WOMAN, registered in classes 3, 9, 16 and 41, and its goodwill in the WONDER WOMAN character generally. In the first instance decision in June 20

The latest Luxury Law Jurisdictional Comparison Guide has been released. The Guide provides jurisdictional-specific answers and insights into how luxury businesses can protect their brands. It's written by IP legal experts from around the world and focuses on trade mark law, copyright, designs, privacy, product placement and the protection of corporate image and reputation. Rosie Burbidge wrote the UK chapter - available here. More information on the guide can be found here.

In a decision likely to be welcomed by owners of 3D trade marks, the EU General Court has ruled that the shape of Guerlain’s Rouge G lipstick “is uncommon for a lipstick and differs from any other shape existing on the market”. The Court reversed the Board of Appeal’s finding, and found the shape could be registered as an EU trade mark. Guerlain applied for an EU trade mark (pictured) in September 2018 for “lipsticks” in class 3. It was rejected by the examiner under Article

A recent decision of the EU General Court looks like good news for celebrities. The singer Miley Cyrus had applied to register her name as an EUTM, but the EUIPO Board of Appeal found that there was a likelihood of confusion with an earlier figurative registration for CYRUS (pictured). In its judgment on 16 June, the General Court reversed that finding (Case T-368/20). The Court found that it was uncontested that Miley Cyrus is well known and “a public figure of international

The UK IPO, at least, seems resistant to Wonder Woman’s superpowers, after it rejected DC Comics’ opposition to a trade mark application for WONDER MUM for goods such as soaps, perfumery and deodorants in class 3. The application was filed by consumer goods company Unilever on 17 December 2019. DC Comics objected to the WONDER MUM trade mark on three grounds: (1) likelihood of confusion under Section 5(2)(b) of The Act. This was based on DC Comics’ EU trade mark for WONDER WO