Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2025:1096
Date: 2025-12-10
Language of the case: German
Court formation: Eighth Chamber
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded;Action for annulment - successful
Origin: France

Judgment of the General Court of 10 December 2025 – Savencia v EUIPO – Hofmeister (Shape of a cheese) (Case T-481/24) 1 (EU trade mark – Opposition proceedings – International registration designating the European Union – Three-dimensional mark in the shape of a cheese – Earlier three-dimensional national marks – Relative ground for refusal – Likelihood of confusion – Global assessment of the likelihood of confusion – Distinctive character of the earlier mark – Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001) Language of the case: German Parties Applicant: Savencia SA (Viroflay, France) (represented by: G. Brox, F. Hagemann and A. Berger, lawyers) Defendant: European Union Intellectual Property Office (represented by: T. Klee, acting as Agent) Other party to the proceedings before the Board of Appeal of EUIPO, intervener before the General Court: Hofmeister Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG (Lauben, Germany) (represented by: F. Pfefferkorn, lawyer) Re: By its action under Article 263 TFEU, the applicant seeks the annulment of the decision of the Fifth Board of Appeal of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) of 8 July 2024 (Joined Cases R 1920/2022-5 and R 1941/2022-5). Operative part of the judgment The Court: 1. Annuls the decision of the Fifth Board of Appeal of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) of 8 July 2024 (Joined Cases R 1920/2022-5 and R 1941/2022-5); 2. Dismisses the action as to the remainder; 3. Orders EUIPO to bear its own costs and pay those incurred by Savencia SA for the purposes of the proceedings before the General Court; 4. Orders Hofmeister Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG to bear its own costs incurred in the proceedings before the General Court. ____________ 1 OJ C, C/2024/6447, 4. 11. 2024.