Court confirms that bicycle helmet infringes rival's design rights

In Yakkay A/S v Stormwear ApS (Case V-95-11, December 17 2013), the Maritime and Commercial Court has found that Stormwear ApS had infringed Yakkay A/S's design rights for its bicycle helmets.

In 2008 Yakkay registered two EU designs for bicycle helmets. Immediately thereafter, Yakkay began marketing and selling the helmets, both within Denmark and in 15 other EU countries. The helmets won a number of design awards.

In 2011 Stormwear began selling a bicycle helmet named Cocoons through a Danish supermarket chain. According to the information provided, Stormwear sold 3,900 helmets with a profit of Dkr35 per helmet.

Yakkay was of the opinion that Stormwear's helmet violated its design. On September 19 2011 Yakkay obtained an interim injunction.

The Maritime and Commercial Court upheld and confirmed the injunction. The court found that Yakkay's helmet clearly differed from other older helmets and that the registration could be upheld. The court also found that Stormwear's helmet violated Yakkay's design rights, and that Stormwear knew or should have known this.

As compensation for use of the design, Stormwear was ordered to pay Dkr25,000. However, Stormwear was not ordered to pay anything to cover Yakkay's losses, as Yakkay had failed to prove that it had suffered any loss. Stormwear was further ordered to pay Dkr82,800 as costs.

Mads Marstrand-Jørgensen, MAQS Law Firm, Copenhagen