Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2024:781
Date: 2024-11-06
Language of the case: German
Court formation: Sixth Chamber
Subject matter: Trade marks;Intellectual, industrial and commercial property
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded;Action for annulment - inadmissible
Origin: Germany

Summary of the pleas in law on which the application is based – Pleas in law not set out in the application – Reference to statement submitted to the Board of Appeal reproduced in the application – Inadmissibility (Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 21, first para.; Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 177(1)(d)) (see paragraphs 20-22) 3. EU trade mark – Procedural provisions – Statement of reasons for decisions – First sentence of Article 94(1) of Regulation 2017/1001 – Scope identical to that of Article 296 TFEU – Recourse by the Board of Appeal to implicit reasoning – Whether permissible – Conditions (Art. 296 TFEU; Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, Art. 41(2)(c); European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 94(1), first sentence) (see paragraphs 27-29) 4. EU trade mark – Appeals procedure – Action before the EU judicature – Decision of a unit of the Office forming part of the context of the decision of the Board of Appeal (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 71(1)) (see paragraph 33) 5. EU trade mark – Decisions of EUIPO – Principle of equal treatment – Principle of good administration – EUIPO’s previous decision-making practice – Principle of legality – Need for a stringent and full examination in each individual case (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001) (see paragraphs 37, 38) 6. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Absolute grounds for refusal – Marks consisting exclusively of signs or indications which may serve to designate the characteristics of a product or service – Meaning (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001; Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paragraphs 46, 47, 49) 7. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Absolute grounds for refusal – Marks consisting exclusively of signs or indications which may serve to designate the characteristics of a product or service – Assessment of the descriptive character of a sign – Criteria (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001; Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paragraphs 48, 65, 66) 8. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Absolute grounds for refusal – Marks consisting exclusively of signs or indications which may serve to designate the characteristics of a product or service – Concept of characteristic (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001; Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paragraphs 50, 51) 9. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Absolute grounds for refusal – Marks consisting exclusively of signs or indications which may serve to designate the characteristics of a product or service – Figurative Mark inTime Agile Logistics (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001; Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paragraphs 60-62, 67-70, 72, 73) 10. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Refusal of registration based on one of the absolute grounds for refusal set out in Article 7(1) of Regulation 2017/1001 – Whether sufficient (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)) (see paragraph 77) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action; 2. Orders IN tIME Express Logistik GmbH and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) each to bear their own costs.