The refusal to grant trademark protection due to contravention of public policy and good manners

Abstract

The protection of commonly held values in trademark law has been ensured under Article 1291[1], point 7 of the Industrial Property Law Act. Under this provision, registration of trademarks contrary to public policy or good manners is not permitted. An equivalent regulation is also applicable under EU law in relation to the EU trademark registration system. This is regulation is one of the absolute grounds for the refusal to register, which requires a thorough and comprehensive examination of the trademark to be undertaken by the relevant authorities. However, there are doubts regarding which circumstances need to be considered in such investigations. Despite the fact that the views of the doctrine and judicature are not uniform on this issue, it is increasingly often recognized – in particular in the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union – that there is a strong need to refer in the analysis of a trademark to a broader social context. This context should include the cultural and political aspects characteristic of a given society. Consequently, this would allow a proper interpretation of the content of a trademark.