Water Works For Hasbro As EU Court Limits Monopoly Monopoly

• Published date: 11 May 2021
• Subject Matter: Intellectual Property, Trademark
• Law Firm: Stevens & Bolton
• Author: Ms Astrid Arnold

The EU's second highest court has cut down the scope of Hasbro's European Union MONOPOLY trade mark on the basis that it was re-filed in bad faith¹. Trade mark owners should review their filing strategies to avoid the risk of invalidity due to re-filing.

What did Hasbro do?

The court found that Hasbro had sought to avoid the consequences of the non-use provisions by re-filing some of its earlier trade marks. This refers to the "use it or lose it" principle that is fundamental to trade mark law and which provides that a trade mark will normally become vulnerable to cancellation if it is not put to genuine use within five years. This rule gives trade mark owners an initial grace period of five years within which they can pursue infringers and oppose later third party trade mark applications without needing to demonstrate use. After...