Trademark Law

‘sLEGRAND LESAGE-CATEL works for the legal recognition and protection of manufacturing, commercial or service trade marks—fundamental to a business organisation communicating with its market—and seeks to defend rights to the promotion, identification and marketing of products and services.

Article L. 711-1 of the Code of Intellectual Property defines the trade mark as “a sign constituting a graphical representation conferring a distinctive character on the products or services of an individual or legal entity.”

Advisory Services

LEGRAND LESAGE-CATEL advises over trademark registrations with the Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle (INPI – National Institute of Industrial Property), Office for the Harmonisation of the Internal Market (OHIM), and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).

In liaison with the corporate legal and communication departments responsible for protecting their business’s brand image, the Law Firm is involved in defining the scope of the protection sought and of the resources allocated.

LEGRAND LESAGE-CATEL drafts contracts assigning and licensing rights to newly registered trademarks, assists in businesses compliance to rules of advertising and respect for rights to image, while cooperating with Industrial Property consultants in investigations and analysis with a view to establishing trademark availability and validity.

LEGRAND LESAGE-CATEL assists parties in drawing up trade mark licensing contracts and their publication in the registers held by national, EU and international bodies.

Our lawyers also keep constantly abreast of developments in fundamental and case law, both at national and EU level, including involvement in the work of specialist associations.

Litigation

In addition to raising matters with specialist bodies such as the Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle (INPI – National Institute of Industrial Property) and Office for Harmonisation of the Internal Market (OHIM) and the courts (Appeal Courts, Court of the European Union, European Court of Justice), LEGRAND LESAGE-CATEL’s main interests are:

• Litigation relating to the validity of trademarks, fraudulent registrations and claims, annulment, infringement, punitive and other damages, both as plaintiff and defendant;
• Lawsuits over the performance and termination of contracts involving trademark conveyance, disposal or re-assignation;
• Disputes relating to the licensing of trademarks, their validity, the payment of fees and issues of termination;
• More generally, any and all procedures relating to the law on trademarks, including rights to image, copyright, advertising, unfair competition and the liabilities incurred by advertising agencies …

LEGRAND LESAGE-CATEL represents and supports parties before competent jurisdictions and more particularly before the Paris District Court and Appeal Court, which have exclusive competency in such matters.

We may also at client request seek and oversee court-ordered confiscations, searches for material evidence under injunction, and temporary stays of action, as well as initiate enforcement or restraint proceedings..