Later this year, the UK Supreme Court will deliver a judgment that could fundamentally change trademark prosecution and enforcement strategies in the UK.
In the case of Sky v SkyKick, the Supreme Court will rule on whether a UK trademark covering a broad range of goods and services can be invalidated in whole or in part because the application was made in bad faith in that the trademark owner had no intention of using the mark in relation to the full array goods and services. The SkyKick case was referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union and in 2020 that court formulated a bad faith test. The English High Court, however, adopted a different approach to the interpretation and application of that test, with the Court of Appeal disagreeing on how the test should be applied. The Supreme Court will decide which approach is correct.
The Supreme Court hearing is scheduled for late June 2023. In this roundtable—which will take place before the judgment is handed down—we will anticipate the Supreme Court’s decision. We will hear opposing views on which way the Supreme Court should rule and why, and we will discuss the practical implications of each outcome for brand owners with regard to prosecution and enforcement strategy.
This will be an interactive session, involving practitioner trademark experts from the UK and EU. There will be an opportunity for attendees to participate in a dedicated question and answer session, allowing broader audience knowledge-sharing and debate around the important issues of bad faith.
Speakers:
Lindsay Lane KC (8 New Square, United Kingdom)
Claire Lehr (Edwin Coe LLP, United Kingdom)
Michael C. Maier (Nordemann Czychowski & Partner, Germany)
Richard Goddard (BP plc, United Kingdom)
Moderator:
Florian Traub (Pinsent Masons LLP, United Kingdom)
Date:
July 6, 2023
Time:
09:30 am–11:30 am British Summer Time
Registration from 09:00 am
Location:
Pinsent Masons LLP
30 Crown Place
London EC2A 4ES
United Kingdom
Language:
English
Note: This will be an in-person roundtable to be held in London, with the additional option of attending online. This event is free of charge and the in-person roundtable is limited to the first 70 registrants. If you are interested in attending but are unable to attend in person, you can register for the online event.
For the online event, please register here before July 4
.For the in-person event, please register via the "Register to Attend" button before June 30.