SA Societe LTJ Diffusion v SA Sadas, Case C-291/100, 2003 ECR-1-2799, 2003 ETMR 83
Citation: SA Societe LTJ Diffusion v SA Sadas, Case C-291/100, 2003 ECR-1-2799, 2003 ETMR 83
Rule of thumb: Is trade mark law the same all over the world? Yes and no. There is a clear and extensive treaty underpinning trade mark law which most countries agree.
Judgment:
- There is a strong international treaty element underpinning trade mark law. Trade mark law in different countries is fairly similar and it is useful for people to be cognisant of cases from other jurisdictions rather than only their national one, ‘... I ... do not ... agree that a directive and regulation which use the same criteria and the same language in parallel contexts must be interpreted differently simply because they are different in nature. On the contrary, when the community legislature takes care to express itself in that manner – as it clearly did in the fields of trade marks – the presumption is very strong indeed that the two measures are intended to be interpreted the same way. The fact that they will be applied in different legal and factual circumstances does not detract from that presumption... and in principle, therefore, I am of the view that the relevant parallel provisions of the directive and the regulation fall to be interpreted in the same way’.
Warning: This is not professional legal advice. This is not professional legal education advice. Please obtain professional guidance before embarking on any legal course of action. This is just an interpretation of a Judgment by persons of legal insight & varying levels of legal specialism, experience & expertise. Please read the Judgment yourself and form your own interpretation of it with professional assistance.