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DeutschNon Disclosure Agreements
Confidentiality agreements, Non Disclosure Agreements, commonly known as NDAs, are of great importance in business-to-business relations, as can be seen in the following examples. Service providers (IT, maintenance of facilities and machinery, among others) often have access to confidential information of the company receiving such services (production processes, organisation and facilities, etc.). The same happens when an undertaking collaborates with another undertaking in the development of…
The confidentiality duty in the employment contract
Although no one can validly allege ignorance of the law, it is very convenient to include a clause in the employment contract that imposes the specific duty of confidentiality, what this duty implies for the worker, as well as the possible consequences of its infringement, so that in the future it will not be possible to invoke an error in the interpretation and scope of the duty of loyalty established in art. 5 of the Workers' Statute. Article 5. Labour duties. Workers have the following basic…
Trade Secrets
The business owner often has under his control commercial value information, which he protects by means of secrecy. Examples of such information are chemical formulas, manufacturing and organisational processes, product information or financial information. It is intellectual property in the broad sense, which has specific legal protection and no expiry date, but ceases to be protected when the information is disclosed or becomes public (e.g. when the controlling businessman decides to apply…
No unfair advantage was found to have been taken. LA TIENDA DEL LOTERO
Factual Background SOCIEDAD ESTATAL LOTERÍAS Y APUESTAS DEL ESTADO, S.M.E, S.A, the plaintiff, is the proprietor of a series of national and European trade marks consisting of "LOTERÍAS", "ADMINISTRACIÓN DE LOTERIA" and "LOTERÍAS Y APUESTAS DEL ESTADO". On 4 May 2020, the SPTO issued a decision dismissing the appeal lodged by the plaintiff against the decision of 10 February 2020, which granted trade mark no. 4013005 "LA TIENDA DEL LOTERO". The appellant filed a contentious-administrative…
Trademark infringement. Internet advertising system by referencing (Adwords).
Grupo Ilusión de Ortodoncistas, S.L. brought a number of actions against Laboratorio Lucas Nicolás, S.L., owner of the website www.clinicasvitaldent.info/VitalDent, based on infringement of the trademark "Clínicas Ortodoncis". The defendant used the applicant's trade mark as an adword to redirect to a result advertising the defendant's franchise network of dental clinics, preceded by the applicant's own trade mark. The services offered by the defendant on its website (Vitaldent) to which the…
PHILIP MORRIS engaged in acts of unlawful advertising of the IQOS device and HEETS tobacco falling within Article 18 Unfair Competition Act.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND The present case arises out of the lawsuit brought by ALTADIS, S.A. ("ALTADIS") against PHILIP MORRIS SPAIN, S.L. ("PHILIP MORRIS"), exercising the declaratory action for unfairness and the actions for cessation, prohibition of future repetition and rectification provided for in article 32 LCD. The claim arose from the appearance in the printed and digital press, since January 2017, of information (advertorials, coverage of presentation events, company news, interviews with…
Design invalidity proceedings: Disclosure of prior design and lack of individual character.
Litigation Background Fabryki Mebli "Forte" S.A., the applicant, on 17 September 2013, applied to the EUIPO for the following Community design, which was granted on 21 November 2013. On 14 March 2016, the intervener Bog-Fran sp. z o.o. sp.k, filed an application for a declaration of invalidity of the applicant's design on the grounds that it was not new and lacked individual character. In support of its application, it submitted the following representation of a piece of furniture called…
The television format of "El Rosco" is not protected as intellectual property as neither originality nor authorship has been proven.
BACKGROUND TO THE DISPUTE The commercial company "MC&F BROADCASTING PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION, C.V.", is a company specialised in the design, production and marketing of television formats, according to the defendant, the creator of the television test known in Spain as "EL ROSCO", which has traditionally been included in the television programme "PASAPALABRA". On 2 February 2010, “MC&F” and the defendant entered into a licensing agreement for the economic exploitation of the “EL…
The relevant non-English speaking public does not recognise the geographical reference "Kerry" as a geographical indication of the origin of the product. Likelihood of trade mark confusion. KERRY v. KERRY:
BACKGROUND TO THE DISPUTE Ornua Co-operative Ltd (hereinafter 'Ornua') is an Irish company which, since 1961, has been engaged in the production and export of Class 29 goods (dairy products), in particular butter, under various trade marks, including 'Kerrygold'. The use of the distinctive sign of its trade mark 'Kerrygold' dates back to 1962, when it began marketing butter under that sign in the United Kingdom, where it has a very significant presence. In addition, now, Ornua markets these…
Industrial design. Damages prior to rei vindicatio proceedings
BATH COLLECTION SL, as plaintiff, filed a statement of claim against BATHFORTE SL AND OTHERS, defendant, in which the main actions for claiming registration of the industrial design and infringement of the same, and subsidiary actions for unfair competition, were deducted. The First Instance Judgment partially upheld the claim, but did not accept the claim for damages. In order to make those rulings, the judgment was based on the fact that the defendant acted in bad faith in obtaining…