Invalidity appeal · Board of Appeal · 2023-09-06
R1072/2020-3
Contested design: 004539302-0003
Outcome
The contested decision is annulled, Community design No 4 539 302-0003 is declared invalid, and the design holder must bear costs fixed at EUR 2,050.
Show verbatim operative text
1. Annuls the contested decision and declares Community design No 4 539 302-0003 invalid. 2. Orders the design holder to bear the costs and fees incurred by the invalidity applicant in the invalidity and appeal proceedings. 3. Fixes the costs to be paid by the design holder to the invalidity applicant for the invalidity and appeal proceedings at EUR 2 050.
CostsHolder ordered to pay costs of €2,050
Parties
Applicant · invalidity challenger
ESSAtechvia PDF extraction
Czechia (CZ)
Pristoupim 85, 28201 Pristoupim, Czech Republic
Represented by
Jurate Breimelyte
Holder · RCD owner
ADS Leszek Kowalik, Bartłomiej Włodarczyk Spółka Cywilnavia PDF extraction
Poland (PL)
ul.Joachima Lelewela 23, 41-219 Sosnowiec, Poland
Represented by
Prior art cited (3)
Photographs showing internal parts of a vehicle key with a round battery and battery-disconnector component
Online articles and images of battery-controller designs used with round batteries in remote controls
www.carsystems.eu / www.keylessdefender.org · Internet pages filed by the invalidity applicant
Utility-model material belonging to the design holder concerning the battery controller structure
PL 127799 U1
Legal grounds invoked
Argument summary
- ›The invalidity applicant argued that the battery-controller design for a remote key was composed exclusively of features dictated by technical function and relied on photos, web materials and the holder’s own utility-model evidence.
- ›The design holder maintained that alternative shapes and commercial presentation showed room for visual design choices and that the contested RCD should remain valid.
- ›Following the General Court’s annulment of the 2021 Board decision, the Board reassessed the case, admitted the additional evidence and found that all relevant features were exclusively determined by the product’s technical function.
- ›The appeal was allowed, the first-instance decision was annulled, the contested RCD was declared invalid, and costs of EUR 2,050 were fixed against the design holder.
Deciding panel
- ChairS. Stürmann
- RapporteurA. Pohlmann
- MemberC. Bartos
- RegistrarH. Dijkema
Decision files
| Language | Type | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| frFrench | human translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| deDeutsch (de) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| esespañol (es) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| ititaliano (it) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| enEnglish | original | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
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