Invalidity · first instance · 2018-03-20
000010716
Contested design: 001435499-0001
Outcome
The application for a declaration of invalidity is upheld, the contested Registered Community design is declared invalid, and the holder must pay the applicant's costs fixed at EUR 750.
Show verbatim operative text(de)
Dem Antrag auf Nichtigerklärung wird stattgegeben. Das eingetragene Gemeinschaftsgeschmacksmuster Nr. 001435499-0001 wird für nichtig erklärt. Der Inhaber trägt die Kosten der Antragstellerin, die auf 750 EUR festgesetzt werden.
CostsHolder ordered to pay costs of €750
Parties
Applicant · invalidity challenger
Küberit Profile Systems GmbH & Co. KG
Germany (DE)
Römerweg 9, 58513 Lüdenscheid, Deutschland
Represented by
Holder · RCD owner
Georg Sondermann
Germany (DE)
Biggeseestr. 20a, 57489 Drolshagen, Deutschland
Represented by
Prior art cited (6)
Fußbodenschienen
40200327-0001 · Deutsches Patent- und Markenamt · disclosed 2002-06-25
Legal grounds invoked
Argument summary
- ›The applicant sought invalidity for lack of novelty and individual character, relying on six earlier German design registrations and arguing that D1 was materially the same floor-profile design.
- ›The holder argued that the base profile can remain visible in normal use and that the contested design differed sufficiently, particularly in the cut-out shape and the sector's design constraints.
- ›The Division found D1 had been disclosed before the filing date, rejected the claim that Article 4(2) excluded the visible features, and considered designer freedom only partly constrained by function.
- ›Comparing D1 with the contested design, the Division found only minor differences and the same overall impression on the informed user, so the design lacked individual character and was invalidated.
Deciding panel
- MemberGailė SAKALAITĖ
- MemberNatascha GALPERIN
- MemberStephan HANNE
Decision files
| Language | Type | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| deGerman | original | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
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