Trade mark applications made in bad faith
Appointed Person dismisses the appeal.
On 19 September 2017, in a decision of Mr. Allan James issued on behalf of the Registrar, a trade mark application filed by CKL Holdings NV was refused following an opposition by a third party on the grounds that the application was filed in ‘bad faith’.
The Hearing Officer determined the applicant had no intention of using the trade mark to distinguish its goods from those of other traders. The application was, instead, purely part of a blocking strategy directed at other users of similar marks, either now or in the future.
The applicant filed an appeal to the Appointed Person and in a decision O/036/18 dated 18 December 2017, Mr. Geoffrey Hobbs QC, as the Appointed Person, dismissed the appeal.
The Office examines applications for trade marks against the criteria set out in the Trade Marks Act 1994. Where the Office believes that an application has been made in bad faith, an objection may be raised by the Office as part of the examination process.