Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2001:286
Date: 2001-12-11
Language of the case: German
Court formation: Fourth Chamber
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Trade marks;Intellectual, industrial and commercial property
Concepts: Word marks
Procedure: Action for annulment - successful
Origin: Germany

Summary of the Judgment 
Community trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the Community trade mark — 
Absolute grounds for refusing registration — Marks composed exclusively of signs or 
indications which may serve to designate the characteristics of a product — Signs devoid 
of any distinctive character — 'DAS PRINZIP DER BEQUEMLICHKEIT' 
(Council Regulation No 40/94, Art. 7(1)(b) and (c)) 
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SUMMARY — CASE T-138/00 
In order to be caught by Article 7(1)(c) of 
Regulation No 40/94 on the Community 
trade mark, a mark must consist 'exclu­
sively' of signs or indications which may 
serve to designate a characteristic of the 
goods or services concerned. As regards a 
word sign composed of several elements, it 
follows from that requirement that descrip-
tiveness must be assessed on the basis of all 
the elements of which the word sign is 
composed and not on the basis of only one 
of those elements. Consequently, as regards 
the registration of 'DAS PRINZIP DER 
BEQUEMLICHKEIT' as a Community 
trade mark sought in respect of land 
vehicles and their parts, and household 
and office furniture, even if the 'Bequem­
lichkeit' element designates, on its own, a 
quality of the goods concerned which may 
be relevant when the class of persons 
targeted makes the decision to purchase, 
'DAS PRINZIP DER BEQUEMLICH­
KEIT', when considered on the basis of all 
its elements and read in its entirety, cannot 
be regarded as consisting exclusively of 
signs or indications which may serve to 
designate the quality of the goods con­
cerned. 
Moreover, as regards the assessment of 
distinctiveness, it is not appropriate to 
apply to slogans criteria which are stricter 
than those applicable to other types of sign. 
The words in question could only be 
regarded as lacking any distinctive charac­
ter, on the basis of Article 7(1)(b) of 
Regulation No 40/94, if it were demon­
strated that the combination of the words 
'das Prinzip der...' ('the principle of...') 
alone with a term designating a character­
istic of the goods or services concerned is 
commonly used in business communica­
tions and, in particular, in advertising. 
(see paras 27-28, 44, 46) 
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