Council Directive No. 89/104/EEC (Repealed by EU Directive 2008/95/EC), to approximate the laws of the Member States relating to trade marks, was introduced into
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been ...
law on 21 December 1988. Its provisions were required to be introduced into national law by 29 December 1991. On this date, the
Directive therefore became law with direct effect in each of the member states of the European Union.
Intention
The Directive is intended to approximate the laws of the Member States of the European Union which relate to
trade mark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from other ...
s and to harmonise disparities in the respective
trade mark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from other ...
laws which have the potential to impede the
free movement of goods and
provision of services, or to distort
competition
Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indiv ...
within the European Union.
The Directive provided a framework of minimum provisions applicable throughout the European Union but did not seek to impose onerous obligations on national trademark registries. For example, the Directive did not stipulate how member states should deal with the registration, revocation and invalidity of trademarks. These elements were left to the national bodies' discretion.
Transposition
In the UK the Directive was transposed into domestic law by sections 5(3) and 10(3) of the
Trade Marks Act 1994.
[UK Legislatio]
Trade Marks Act 1994
/ref>
Grounds for refusal or invalidity
The Directive stipulates that signs ''cannot'' be registered if they are:
* Devoid of distinctive character
* Indicate the kind, quality, or other characteristics of the goods or services they represent
* Are customary signs in the trade
* Contrary to public policy
* Deceitful
See also
* Windsurfing Chiemsee Produktions v. Boots
References
External links
Text of directive with headers (html)Text of the directive (pdf)
{{Intellectual property laws of the European Union
European Union directives
Intellectual property law of the European Union
1988 in law
1988 in the European Economic Community