I’ve been handling cannabis trademarks since 2017, when medicinal cannabis was legalised in Germany. In the beginning those marks were only accepted for Nice Class 5, meaning only cannabis for medicinal use was permitted. But that has changed. Both the European and the German IP office now accept cannabis marks for all sorts of cannabis […]
Recently, on the Hoban Law Group blog, we covered five tips for product labeling. As mentioned, complying with various state-specific labeling requirements is essential for ensuring products follow all applicable labeling regulations governing the category of product being sold or distributed. As we discussed, many states have established regulations that expressly govern how business should label […]
In a recent decision (judgment of 12.5.2021, ref. T-178/20), the General Court upheld the European Union Intellectual Property Office’s (EUIPO) rejection of the EU trademark application “Bavaria Weed” for being contrary to public policy (in contrast, the DPMA registered the mark). The trademark applicant, a producer of medical cannabis, had argued in the proceedings that […]
The General Court has ruled that, in specific circumstances, repeat filings of an earlier trade mark may constitute bad faith First movesHasbro, who at the time already owned three MONOPOLY EUTMs, filed in April 2010 another MONOPOLY EUTMA for goods and services in classes 9, 16, 28 and 41. This trademark covered partially new goods […]
The Court of Justice of the European Union, General Court, recently lowered Chanel’s hopes of having a trademark belonging to Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. invalidated. The court found that the trademarks (see below) are not similar, therefore there is no likelihood of confusion and that trademarks must be assessed as registered, regardless of their rotation […]
The interpretation and standardization of national law on the basis of European law requirements always brings uncertainties – and this is also the case in trademark law. For owners of German trademarks, however, thanks to the decision of the Federal Court of Justice of January 14, 2021 (Case No. I ZR 40/20) and the recently […]
Authors: Martin Matzner, LL.M. (University of Turin)“Incomplete, contradictory, incomprehensible”: In a recent decision, the Federal Patent Court (BPatG) took the German Patent and Trademark Office (DPMA) to task with rather unflattering wordings. The reason for this was the trademark application “Kloster Scheyern”, which the DPMA had initially rejected. This particularly drastic case shows that some […]
Rodríguez Rueda, S.C., our exclusive Competition Law & Cannabis Advisory Member in Mexico, are pleased to announce the addition of Corporate Law to their IR Global membership. This new position adds further strength to their membership and offers support for fellow members in the area. If you have a requirement in this area, please get in touch […]
As mentioned in our last Cannabis Update dated November 20, 2020, finally on January 12, 2021, Mexico issued the Regulations to the General Health Law regarding the Sanitary Control for the Production, Research and Medical Use of Cannabis and its derivatives (the “Regulations”). The General Health Law was amended in June 2017 precisely to regulate […]
The EU Digital Services Act is taking shape – with potential changes for the advertising industry. While voices from the European Parliament (“EP”) preferred a rather restrictive approach, the EU Commission, under the leadership of the responsible Commissioner Vestager, recently released a press release and the proposal for a “Regulation on a Single Market For […]
In this article you can expect a market overview of the medical use of cannabis in Germany.In particular, we discuss the legal situation, licensing and regulatory questions, distribution and, most recently, future business areas. 1. Is medical cannabis legal in Germany? In 2017, the German legislator amended national narcotic laws and other related provisions legalizing […]
On November 19, 2020 the Court of Justice of the European Union (C-663/18) issued a ruling on the question of whether a national ban on the marketing of cannabidiol (CBD) derived from the entire cannabis sativa plant and not only from its fibres and seeds is contrary to EU law. According to the now issued […]