Norwegian Appeal Court: the MULTI-GYN logo is distinctive!
Bryn Aarflot’s lawyer Sebastian Stigar has over the past years assisted BioClin BV in efforts of having its MULTI-GYN logo registered in Norway.
The trademark was refused by the Norwegian IPO and the independent IP Appeal Board on basis of the mark allegedly being devoid of distinctive character. Borgarting Appeal Court has however overturned the lower instances’ decisions, and concluded that the mark is indeed distinctive, and capable of distinguishing BioClin BV’s goods from those of its competitors. As a result, BioClin BV is entitled to a trademark registration in Norway, and thereby hold proof if its proprietary rights in the mark. The Court of Appeal holds that
“The combination of text, figure and color elements is designed so that the trademark as a whole appears as a fairly typical logo. In the opinion of the Court of Appeal, the average consumer will perceive the trademark as precisely a trademark, and not as a form of decoration or descriptive product information”.
The Court of Appeal’s decision – in which BioClin BV is also awarded full costs – is available here (in Norwegian only).
Registration practice regarding combined marks (trademarks consisting of text and figurative elements) is rather inconsistent. A refusal from the Norwegian IPO and the IP Appeal Board may not by the end of the road – reach out to us at Bryn Aarflot for a discussion on the chances of having your trademark registered.