Information;Judgment — ECLI:EU:T:2021:769
Date: 2021-11-10
Language of the case: English
Court formation: Fifth Chamber
Subject matter: Trade marks;Intellectual, industrial and commercial property
Procedure: Action for annulment - unfounded

Judgment of the General Court (Fifth Chamber) of 10 November 2021 – Nissan Motor v EUIPO – VDL Groep (VDL E-POWER) (Case T‑755/20) (EU trade mark – Opposition proceedings – Application for the EU word mark VDL E-POWER – Earlier national figurative marks e-POWER – Relative ground for refusal – No likelihood of confusion – Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 – Obligation to state reasons – Article 94(1) of Regulation 2017/1001) 1. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Protection of trade marks registered in the United Kingdom – Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union – Effect (Art. 50 TEU; Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, Art. 127) (see paras 15-17) 2. EU trade mark – Appeals procedure – Action before the EU judicature – Jurisdiction of the General Court – Direction addressed to the Office – Precluded (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 72(6)) (see para. 20) 3. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an earlier identical or similar mark registered for identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Criteria for assessment (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Recital 11 and Art. 8(1)(b)) (see paras 25, 26, 67-70) 4. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an earlier identical or similar mark registered for identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Assessment of the likelihood of confusion – Determination of the relevant public – Attention level of the public (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b)) (see para. 27) 5. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an earlier identical or similar mark registered for identical or similar goods or services – Similarity of the marks concerned – Criteria for assessment (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b)) (see paras 31-33, 40) 6. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an earlier identical or similar mark registered for identical or similar goods or services – Similarity of the marks concerned – Assessment of the distinctive character of an element of which a trade mark is composed (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b)) (see para. 39) 7. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an earlier identical or similar mark registered for identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Word mark VDL E-POWER – Figurative mark e-POWER (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b)) (see paras 74, 76, 79, 82) 8. EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an earlier identical or similar mark registered for identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Weak distinctive character of the earlier mark – Effect (European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b)) (see para. 78) 9. Acts of the institutions – Statement of reasons – Obligation – Scope – Plea based on absence or inadequacy of the statement of reasons – Plea alleging incorrectness of the statement of reasons – Distinction (Art. 296 TFEU) (see para. 95) Re: Action brought against the decision of the First Board of Appeal of EUIPO of 20 October 2020 (Case R 2914/2019-1), relating to opposition proceedings between Nissan Motor and VDL Groep. Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the action; 2. Orders Nissan Motor Co. Ltd to bear its own costs and to pay those of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and of VDL Groep BV.