Region: Switzerland

In April 2022 the Federal Supreme Court dealt a blow to both FIFA and Puma by ordering the cancellation of four marks referring to the upcoming World Cup. The Zurich Commercial Court has now held that Puma was also prohibited from using its marks for a wide range of goods.

17 October 2022

In a victory for Swiss chocolatier Lindt & Sprüngli, Switzerland’s highest court has ordered German discount retailer Lidl to stop selling its foil-wrapped chocolate bunny and to destroy its remaining stock.

13 October 2022

The court concluded that the Federal Law on the Protection of the Sign and Name of the Red Cross prohibits the use of any red crescent, irrespective of its shape and orientation.

05 September 2022

The court found that the sign had sufficient distinctive character due to the presence of the element ‘Nemiroff’ written in relief on the bottle.

16 August 2022

The court considered whether the registration of marks referring to sporting events by non-sponsors creates a risk of misleading the public, and addressed for the first time the public domain character of such trademarks.

01 July 2022

The new practice will result in a simplified procedure for many trademark owners.

13 May 2022

According to the Federal Supreme Court, the distinctive character of acronyms depends mainly on whether the sequence of letters can be pronounced as a word, or whether it can only be spelt out.

23 March 2022

The Federal Administrative Court held that a likelihood of indirect confusion could not be excluded, despite the increased level of attention of consumers when purchasing motorised vehicles.

28 February 2022

The Swiss Federal Administrative Court disagreed with the strict approach followed by the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property in this case.

28 October 2021

With exceptions, it will no longer be a prerequisite to limit goods and services to their geographical origin for trademarks containing an indication of source. The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property appears to be becoming more flexible, aligning its approach with that of the European Union.

21 October 2021