Gemeenschapsmerk – Vernietiging van beslissing R 338/2013 2 van de tweede kamer van beroep van het BHIM houdende verwerping van het beroep tegen de weigering van de onderzoeker om het woordmerk „THE LEADERSHIP COMPANY” in te schrijven voor diensten van de klassen 35 en 44.
Het beroep wordt verworpen. Het aangevraagde woordmerk “THE LEADERSHIP COMPANY” is beschrijvend voor de diensten (recruitment en psychologische bijstand). Hier is sprake van nu er aan de zijde van het relevante publiek een hoge mate van aandacht is. Er bestaat een voldoende en concreet verband tussen de diensten en het aangevraagde merk.
27 In the fourth place, it was therefore also correct that, in paragraph 25 of the contested decision, the Board of Appeal found, essentially, that the expression ‘the leadership company’ was perceived by the relevant public as referring to an undertaking which provided recruitment and coaching in order to meet undertakings’ needs in the sphere of recruitment, or indeed in that of leadership skills, particularly by recruiting executives with those skills and by offering consultancy and recruitment services involving them. In that regard, OHIM is correct to put forward that, taking into account the high degree of attentiveness of the professional consumers concerned and with regard both to the services at issue and to the sign applied for, that interpretation prevails without any in-depth consideration or mental step and is sufficient for a sufficiently direct and specific relationship between the services and sign referred to within the meaning of the case-law cited in paragraph 20 above to be established.
28 Consequently, it must be held that the Board of Appeal was correct to conclude that, from the viewpoint of the relevant public, the sign applied for was descriptive of the characteristics of the services concerned within the meaning of Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation No 207/2009.
Lees het arrest hier.