Committee prevents national registration of Community marks

The Greek Trademarks Committee has ruled that Community trademarks cannot subsequently be registered as national trademarks because owners of Community marks have no legitimate reason to also register in Greece.

The committee's Resolution 8162/2002 states that, under Article 4 of the Trademark Law, a mark cannot be registered if (i) it is identical to an earlier trademark, and (ii) the goods or services to which it is applied are identical to the goods or services for which the earlier trademark was granted. The committee concluded that one of the aims of this provision is to prevent further, unnecessary registrations of marks that are already protected by a prior registration, such as registration with the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market.

The committee's resolution was issued in response to an application for registration that was made by the owner of a Community trademark. The committee refused the registration because the applicant had no legitimate reason to register its mark in Greece. The applicant is sufficiently protected under the Community Trademark Regulation, concluded the committee.

Afroditi Gouga, Moussas & Tsibris, Athens