Cartier International AG & Ors v British Sky Broadcasting Ltd & Ors

Cartier International AG & Ors v British Sky Broadcasting Ltd & Ors

The Court of Appeal held that the court has jurisdiction under s.37(1) Senior Courts Act 1981, interpreted in light of Article 11 of the Enforcement Directive, to grant website blocking injunctions against ISPs in cases of trade mark infringement. The threshold conditions and principles for such orders mirror those for copyright blocking orders: the ISPs are intermediaries, the target websites infringe the claimants’ trade marks, the ISPs’ services are used for the infringement, and the ISPs have knowledge. The orders must be necessary, effective, proportionate, dissuasive, not unnecessarily costly or complicated, and avoid barriers to legitimate trade. The court found the orders in this...

Parties
Claimant/respondent: Cartier International AG; Claimant/respondent: Montblanc-Simplo GMBH; Claimant/respondent: Richemont International SA; Defendant/appellant: British Sky Broadcasting Limited; Defendant/appellant: British Telecommunications plc; Defendant/appellant: EE Limited; Defendant/appellant: TalkTalk Telecom Limited; Defendant/appellant: Virgin Media Limited; Intervener: The Open Rights Group
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
06 July 2016
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Court of Appeal Judgment on Appeal From High Court
Outcome
Appeals dismissed
Legal Topics
Website Blocking Injunctions, Trade Mark Infringement, Intermediary Liability, Costs of Implementation, Proportionality, Jurisdiction, Fundamental Rights Under EU Law
Intellectual Property Civil Procedure European Union Law Website Blocking Injunctions Trade Mark Infringement Intermediary Liability Costs of Implementation Proportionality +2 more

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Parties

Cartier International AG

Claimant/respondent

Montblanc-Simplo GMBH

Claimant/respondent

Richemont International SA

Claimant/respondent

British Sky Broadcasting Limited

Defendant/appellant

British Telecommunications plc

Defendant/appellant

EE Limited

Defendant/appellant

TalkTalk Telecom Limited

Defendant/appellant

Virgin Media Limited

Defendant/appellant

The Open Rights Group

Intervener

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Court of Appeal Judgment on Appeal From High Court

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Does the court have jurisdiction to grant website blocking injunctions against ISPs in cases of trade mark infringement?
  2. 2 What are the threshold conditions and principles for granting such injunctions?
  3. 3 Who should bear the costs of implementing website blocking orders?

Ratio Decidendi

The Court of Appeal held that the court has jurisdiction under s.37(1) Senior Courts Act 1981, interpreted in light of Article 11 of the Enforcement Directive, to grant website blocking injunctions against ISPs in cases of trade mark infringement. The threshold conditions and principles for such orders mirror those for copyright blocking orders: the ISPs are intermediaries, the target websites infringe the claimants’ trade marks, the ISPs’ services are used for the infringement, and the ISPs have knowledge. The orders must be necessary, effective, proportionate, dissuasive, not unnecessarily costly or complicated, and avoid barriers to legitimate trade. The court found the orders in this...

Court Disposition

Appeals dismissed

Orders

  • Website blocking injunctions against the ISPs upheld
  • ISPs to bear the costs of implementing the blocking orders