Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2018:230
Date: 2018-04-26
Language of the case: Spanish
Court formation: Sixth Chamber
Subject matter: Trade marks;Intellectual, industrial and commercial property
Procedure: Action for annulment - successful
Origin: Spain

Judgment of the General Court of 26 April 2018 — Messi Cuccittini v EUIPO — J-M.-E.V. e hijos (MESSI) (Case T-554/14) 1 (EU trade mark — Opposition proceedings — Application for EU figurative mark MESSI - Earlier EU word marks MASSI - Relative ground for refusal — Likelihood of confusion — Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 207/2009 (now Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1011)) Language of the case: Spanish Parties Applicant: Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini (Barcelona, Spain) (represented by: initially J. L. Rivas Zurdo and M. Toro Gordillo, then J.-B. Devaureix and J.-Y. Teindas Maillard, lawyers) Defendant: European Union Intellectual Property Office (represented by: initially O. Mondéjar Ortuño, then S. Palmero Cabezas, acting as Agents) Other party to the proceedings before the Board of Appeal of EUIPO, intervener before the General Court: J-M.-E.V. e hijos, SRL (Granollers, Spain) (represented by: J. Güell Serra and M. Ceballos Rodríguez, lawyers) Re: Action brought against the decision of the First Board of Appeal of EUIPO of 23 April 2014 (Case R 1553/2013-1), relating to opposition proceedings between J-M.-E.V. e hijos and M. Messi Cuccittini. Operative part of the judgment The Court: 1. Annuls the decision of the First Board of Appeal of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) of 23 April 2014 (Case R 1553/2013-1); 2. Orders EUIPO, in addition to its own costs, to bear those incurred by Mr Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini; 3. Orders J-M.-E.V. e hijos, SRL to bear its own costs. ____________ 1 OJ C 339, 29.9.2014.