One advantage of European Community IP rights is that the courts of a member state in which an alleged infringer has its place of business are competent to decide cases with effect across the entire EU.
One advantage of European Community intellectual property rights such as the Community trademark or the Community design is that the courts of a member state in which an alleged infringer has its place of business are competent to decide cases with effect across the entire EU. Cease and desist orders affect the whole EU are regularly granted by German courts against German companies.
In Community design cases, the Federal Supreme Court (Bundesgerichtshof) has, in the past, decided that actions committed in one member state constitute a danger of imminent infringement in other member states as well. The establishment of such a danger is a prerequisite of a cease and desist claim according to German law.
Either an infringing action has already been committed and constitutes a likelihood of repetition, or an infringement is held to be imminent; in both cases, cease and desist claims can be enforced in Germany.
The rest of this article is locked for subscribers only. Please login to continue reading.
If you don't have a login, you will need to purchase a subscription to gain access to this article, including all our online content. Please use this link and follow the steps.
For multi-user price options, or to check if your company has an existing subscription to us that we can add you to for FREE, please email Atif Choudhury at achoudhury@worldipreview.com
Baby buggy, Community design, design infringement, manufacturing, Germany Federal Supreme Court
