Karen Millen Ltd. -v- Dunnes Stores & Anor. [2007] IEHC 449 (21 December 2007)

Karen Millen Ltd. -v- Dunnes Stores & Anor. [2007] IEHC 449 (21 December 2007)

The plaintiff established, on the balance of probabilities, that it holds unregistered Community design rights in the KM top, KM blue shirt, and KM brown shirt, as the designs were made available to the public within the EU within the relevant period and the designs possess individual character. The evidential burden on the plaintiff is limited to proving public availability and identifying individual character; the burden of proving lack of individual character rests on the defendant. The defendants' products were produced by copying and do not create a different overall impression on the informed user, thus infringing the plaintiff's rights.

Citation
[2007] IEHC 449
Parties
Plaintiff: Karen Millen Limited; Defendant: Dunnes Stores; Defendant: Dunnes Stores (Limerick) Limited
Jurisdiction
Ireland
Judgment Date
21 December 2007
Procedural Posture
Commercial Intellectual Property Infringement / High Court Judgment After Full Hearing
Outcome
Judgment for the plaintiff
Legal Topics
Unregistered Community Design, Design Infringement, Burden of Proof, Fashion Industry IP, Interpretation of Council Regulation (ec) No 6/2002
Intellectual Property European Union Law Unregistered Community Design Design Infringement Burden of Proof Fashion Industry IP Interpretation of Council Regulation (ec) No 6/2002

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Parties

Karen Millen Limited

Plaintiff

Dunnes Stores

Defendant

Dunnes Stores (Limerick) Limited

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Commercial Intellectual Property Infringement / High Court Judgment After Full Hearing

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the plaintiff holds unregistered Community design rights in the KM top, KM blue shirt, and KM brown shirt under Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002; Whether the defendants infringed those rights by copying and selling similar products; The correct allocation of the burden of proof under Article 85(2) of the Regulation; The definition and role of the 'informed user' in assessing individual character; The evidentiary requirements for establishing individual character and novelty; Whether the court should refer questions to the European Court of Justice regarding Article 85(2)

Ratio Decidendi

The plaintiff established, on the balance of probabilities, that it holds unregistered Community design rights in the KM top, KM blue shirt, and KM brown shirt, as the designs were made available to the public within the EU within the relevant period and the designs possess individual character. The evidential burden on the plaintiff is limited to proving public availability and identifying individual character; the burden of proving lack of individual character rests on the defendant. The defendants' products were produced by copying and do not create a different overall impression on the informed user, thus infringing the plaintiff's rights.

Court Disposition

Judgment for the plaintiff

Orders

  • Declaration that the plaintiff holds unregistered Community design rights in the KM top, KM blue shirt, and KM brown shirt.
  • Declaration that the defendants infringed those rights.