Eglo Leuchten v EUIPO - Di-Ka (Lampe) (Judgment) French Text [2019] EUECJ T-766/17 (07 February 2019)

Eglo Leuchten v EUIPO - Di-Ka (Lampe) (Judgment) French Text [2019] EUECJ T-766/17 (07 February 2019)

The General Court held that the Board of Appeal correctly assessed the degree of freedom of the designer as medium for lighting apparatus and properly found that the contested design produced a different overall impression on the informed user compared to the prior designs. The differences in visible features,...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
[2019] EUECJ T-766/17
Parties
Applicant: Eglo Leuchten GmbH; Respondent: Office de l’Union européenne pour la propriété intellectuelle (EUIPO); Intervener: Di-Ka Vertriebs GmbH & Co. KG
Jurisdiction
European Union
Procedural Posture
Action for Annulment of EUIPO Board of Appeal Decision / Final Judgment at General Court (t 766/17)
Outcome
action dismissed
Legal Topics
Community Design, Nullity Proceedings, Individual Character, Degree of Freedom of the Designer, User Perception
Intellectual Property Design Law EU Law Community Design Nullity Proceedings Individual Character Degree of Freedom of the Designer User Perception

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Parties

Eglo Leuchten GmbH

Applicant

Office de l’Union européenne pour la propriété intellectuelle (EUIPO)

Respondent

Di-Ka Vertriebs GmbH & Co. KG

Intervener

Procedural Posture

Action for Annulment of EUIPO Board of Appeal Decision / Final Judgment at General Court (t 766/17)

  1. 1 Whether the contested Community design lacks individual character under Article 6 of Regulation No 6/2002
  2. 2 Whether the Board of Appeal erred in assessing the degree of freedom of the designer
  3. 3 Whether the Board of Appeal erred in finding that the contested design produces a different overall impression on the informed user compared to prior designs

Ratio Decidendi

The General Court held that the Board of Appeal correctly assessed the degree of freedom of the designer as medium for lighting apparatus and properly found that the contested design produced a different overall impression on the informed user compared to the prior designs. The differences in visible features, including the wall-mounting device, short bar, and oscillating joint, were sufficient to confer individual character. The applicant's arguments regarding the banality of certain features and the focus on the lamp head were rejected. The action was dismissed in its entirety.

Court Disposition

action dismissed

Orders

  • The action is rejected.
  • Eglo Leuchten GmbH is ordered to pay the costs.