Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2023:784
Date: 2023-12-06
Language of the case: German
Court formation: Eighth Chamber
Subject matter: Trade marks;Intellectual, industrial and commercial property
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded

Judgment of the General Court (Eighth Chamber) of 6 December 2023 – DGC Switzerland v EUIPO (cyberscan) (Case T‑85/23) (1) ( EU trade mark – Application for the EU word mark cyberscan – Absolute grounds for refusal – Descriptive character – Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 – Sufficiently direct and specific relationship with the goods and services covered by the trade mark application – No distinctive character – Article 7(1)(b) of Regulation 2017/1001 ) 1. 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 13-15, 25, 28, 29, 44) 2. 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 by EUIPO of registrability – Production of evidence – Not required (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paragraph 30) 3. 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 – Word mark cyberscan (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(c)) (see paragraphs 31, 42, 43, 46, 49, 51, 55, 57) 4. EU trade mark – Decisions of EUIPO – Principle of equal treatment – Principle of sound administration – EUIPO’s previous decision-making practice – Principle of legality (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001) (see paragraphs 58-60) 5. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Assessment of the registrability of a sign – EU rules only taken into account – Earlier registration of the mark in certain Member States or third countries – Decisions not binding EU bodies (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001) (see paragraph 62) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action; 2. Orders each party to bear its own costs. 1 OJ C 127, 11.4.2023.