EUROPEAN UNION: Evidence Admissibility Takes Center Stage in ACOMODIS Dispute

Published: August 21, 2024, in the INTA Bulletin

The General Court decision in case T‑365/23 concerns a trademark dispute involving the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), Habitat Barcelona Unión Constructora SL (the applicant), Acomodeo Marketplace GmbH (the other party before the Board of Appeal (BoA)), and the intervener before the General Court. The decision was issued on June 5, 2024.

The main issues in the dispute revolved around the admissibility of certain evidence and arguments presented by the applicant, as well as the genuine use of the earlier International Registration of the ACOMODIS mark, which was used as a basis to cancel the registration of the EU Trade Mark ACOMODEO.

The applicant requested that the General Court consider whether the genuine use of its earlier International Registration, ACOMODIS, was properly assessed. However, the applicant did not contest the Cancellation Division’s findings regarding the lack of proof of genuine use before the BoA, making those findings final. Consequently, the court ruled that the arguments related to the genuine use of the mark were inadmissible as they were not part of the initial dispute before the BoA.

The General Court examined the admissibility of documents and arguments presented by the applicant, as the intervener argued these were inadmissible since they had only been introduced for the first time at the level of the General Court and were not part of the original administrative procedure before the EUIPO (Cancellation Division or BoA). The court emphasized that its role is to review the legality of the BoA’s decisions based on the factual and legal context presented by the parties during the administrative procedure, not to consider new evidence or arguments introduced at a later stage.

The General Court upheld the BoA’s decision, thus reinforcing the importance of timely presenting all relevant evidence and arguments during the administrative phase of trademark disputes to ensure a comprehensive review by the EUIPO and avoid altering the subject matter of the proceedings later.

Katia De Clercq is a member of INTA the Anti-counterfeiting Committee. She will be present at the upcoming INTA leadership meeting in New Orleans.