IP Legal Consult - Intellectual Property Law Consultant

28/07/2025

'Iceland' trademarks are cancelled following the decision of the General Court (EU) in cases T-105/23 and T-106/23. That means that both the word and figurative EU trademarks containing the term 'Iceland', held by the UK supermarket chain Iceland, must be cancelled. The trademarks were challenged by the Icelandic Ministry of Foreign Affairs due to the broad descriptive nature of the trademarks in relation to the goods and services they encompassed. The ruling reasons with recent judgements that reinforced the fact that geographical names must be available for public use, since they can influence consumer tastes and shape perception, since these names can indicate the origin, quality or characteristics of goods. The rulings highlight the importance of reaching a balance between the public interest and trademark protection.

15/05/2024

The Swedish magistrates' court reminds me of similar courts of first instance found in different parts of the world. How could I then forget to examine my bag before entering the building? Thankfully the security guard was kind enough to understand my passion for collecting antiques and allowed me to enter the court at the time.

08/03/2024

In Sweden, IP rights are divided into copyright, patent rights, design rights and trademark rights. PRV (Patent- och registreringsverket) is the oficial organ that deals with these rights.

03/01/2024

New year, new nonsense from the tabloids. One of the biggest tabloids in Sweden states not only that Disney will soon lose their 'rights' to Mickey Mouse but also that the 'trademark' expires (according to Sky news, they added😲). And no, it's not a fake, since I checked the source. So please, don't be fooled by poor journalism, remember that it's the copyright protection of a specific work that will be free for commercial use, nothing more.

20/12/2023

This year had been very special in terms of professional achievement. I am thankful to all my clients for trusting me with their issues and for being always great to work with. (I have been so busy that I have even neglected this account). Yet I cannot let the year finish without wishing everyone a wonderful end of the year and to say that hopefully I will, next year, put into practice a professional project that I have been dedicated to most of this year. Happy holidays to all of us!

29/10/2023

'Dura lex sed lex': the law is harsh, but it is the law. This maxim of Roman civil law can be interpreted as : no matter how harsh the law is, we still have to succumb to it. It shows the need to respect and apply the law. It also reinforces the fact that if one is not happy with a certain societal rule or norm, one shall do one's best to change it instead of solving the matter with its own hands. An example of such effort can be found in actions of civil disobedience, where the objective lies in changing the system and not an individual case.

30/09/2023

Today's work is all about privacy, terms and conditions, Bach and lilies. Glad helg, allihopa!

16/09/2023

Yes, a sign can receive both copyright and trademark protection at the same time as in the case of the Batman logo. In case T-735/21 it was found by the General Court that a 'device of a stylised depiction of a black bat inside a white oval frame' is valid and distinctive for goods in classes 25 and 28 (clothing, costumes and masks, Art. 7(1)(b)EUTMR). The marks validity was contested in the case mentioned above, yet the GC find that the mark's association to a fictitious character does not impede the existence of the marks indication of origin function.

27/08/2023

As opposed to AI generated works that are not entitled to copyright in most jurisdictions, orphan works receive copyright and are still protected by copyright, but the authors or other right holders are not known or cannot be located due to different reasons, such as the original work being published anonymously. Old folk music is an example.

26/08/2023

As I always say, AI generated content is 'up for grabs'. As long as the basic copyright substance requirement is fulfilled, the sky is the limit!

As I always say: AI generated content is 'up for grabs'! As long as the basic copyright substance requirement is fulfilled, the sky is the limit…

01/07/2023

Man kan inte äga en årstid men ordet som beskriver en årstid kan tillhör någon under vissa speciella kommersiella förutsättningar.

Kan man verkligen äga ett ord och förbjuda andra att använda det? Det är en vanlig fråga vi får. Och ja, du kan registrera ett ord som varumärke för en viss vara eller tjänst. Det betyder att du har ensamrätt att använda det ordet för de varorna och tjänsterna i näringsverksamhet.

Årets traditionella sommarprat i P1 är i full gång. Här är hela listan med årets pratare: https://sverigesradio.se/artikel/sommarpratare-2023-hela-listan

Sveriges Radio har registrerat ordet ”sommar” i klasserna 9, 16, 38 och 41 – vilket förenklat täcker radioprogram, CD-skivor och ljudupptagningar. Det betyder att de kan invända mot att någon använder ett liknande ord i kommersiella sammanhang på liknande varor och tjänster. Det vill säga, att någon annan än Sveriges Radio använder varumärket för egen vinning eller skadar det på något sätt i en näringsverksamhet.

Så, har vi på PRV gjort ett varumärkesintrång, nu när vi använt ordet i vår social media-post? Nej. Däremot skulle PRV inte kunna använda ordet för vissa och varor och tjänster i kommersiella sammanhang.