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Archive for: Art. 135 PBAC

Procedural law, case GSK 940/04

January 25th, 2011, Tomasz Rychlicki

The Supreme Administrative Court in its judgment of 7 January 2005 case file GSK 940/04 held that the SAC shall apply the measures provided for in Article 135 the Polish Act of 30 August 2002 on Proceedings Before Administrative Courts – PBAC – (in Polish: Prawo o postępowaniu przed sądami administracyjnymi), published in Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) No 153, item 1270 with subsequent amendments, in order to eliminate breaches of law in respect of actions or acts issued or undertaken in all proceedings that were conducted within the case to which the cassation complaint was filed, if it is necessary to its final ending. The Court is obliged to go beyond the boundaries of a cassation complaint, but it does not mean, however, that the court is not bound by the limits of a case in which the action was brought. It cannot therefore adopt the measures provided for by the law and “interfere” in the new issue which has been or shall be the subject of proceedings before an administrative authority, and acts that should be issued in this kind proceeding.

This case concerned the request to decide on the lapse of the right deriving from registration of a trade mark that was filed before the Polish Patent Office by P.H. “Jubiler” Spółka z o.o. from Poznań. The proceeding before the PPO proved that this case should be focused on other important issues, mainly, the validity of transfer of the registration of the trade mark JUBILER R-60833. The PPO dismissed the request. The company from Poznań filed a complaint against this decision. The Voivodeship Administrative Court in Poznań in its judgment of 16 March 2004 case file II SA 2550/02 dismissed it. P.H. “Jubiler” sp. z o.o. filed a cassation complaint.

R-60833

The Supreme Administrative Court held that the boundaries of the administrative case are determined by the extent of judicial review of public administration, which is provided in Article 1 of the Polish Act of 25 July 2002 on Law on Administrative Courts – LAC – (in Polish: Prawo o ustroju sądów administracyjnych), published in Journal of Laws (Dziennik Ustaw) No. 153, item 1269 with subsequent amendments. Therefore, in the case that concerned a complaint filed on the issue of the lapse of the registration of trade mark, the Court could not examine and apply the measures provided for by law in another case, namely concerning the agreement on the transfer of the registration of the trade mark.

Trade mark law, case II GSK 332/08

October 14th, 2008, Tomasz Rychlicki

On December 1999, Polish company Top Choice Agata Murawska has applied for trade mark registration for word mark WINNER and word-figurative sign W WINNER in Class 21 for goods such as combs, hair brushes and other products and in Class 29 for rollers. In 2003, The Polish Patent Office granted the right of protection respectively R-148543 and R-148540.

R-148540

The Company Inter Vion SA from Warszawa decided to invalidate aforementioned registrations claiming that those trade marks are the company name (the firm) of Tong-Fong Brush Factory Co. Ltd., from Taiwan which is one of the biggest producers of brushes, combs and mirrors (60 milions of pieces produced in 2000). The WINNER sign, although not registered, was used by Taiwanese company since 1997 on the Polish market. The Company from Taiwan presented an offer involving a series WINNER products to several of Polish companies, including Inter Vion and Top Choice. Since 1998 Top Choise has imported the above-mentioned accessories bearing WINNER trade mark, first by intermediaries, and since 2000 directly from the Taiwanese company. InterVion has signed its first importation contract for WINNER products in 1999. The company has presented first images of these goods in its directory of 1999/2000. During invalidation proceedings before the Polish Patent Office InterVion has alleged that Top Choice, by registering the disputed marks, tried to gain a monopoly on the importation of products.

The PPO invalidated WINNER and W WINNER trade marks in its decision of 4 October 2006, act signatures Sp. 119/05 and Sp. 46/06. The Voivodeship Administrative Court in Warsaw has dismissed Top Choice’s appeal complaints in its judgments of 27 August 2007, case files VI SA/Wa 114/07 and VI SA/Wa 115/07. Top Choice filed a cassation complaint before the Supreme Administrative Court claiming that VAC erred in its findings and violated the administrative procedure rules.

The Supreme Administrative Court in its judgment of 8 October 2008 case file II GSK 332/08 dismissed the cassation and based its arguments on procedural errors included in Top Choice’s complaint which in Court’s opinion lacked proper claims’ construction. However, SAC also held that company who registered other company’s name as a trade mark acted in bad faith which was a sufficient circumstance to declare invalidation of such trade mark by the PPO.