TRADEMARKS AND DESIGNS

Our team of trademark experts across the Danubia Group are all registered professional representatives before the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

We are well versed in filing new European trademark applications with EUIPO directly and in defending applications in light of any objections subsequently raised. In the event that a notice of opposition is filed against an application we are representing, we would always seek a solution to ensure registration of your trademark is not blocked and represent your best interests in proposing and negotiating a feasible and satisfactory settlement.

We can also demonstrate considerable experience in ensuring effective representation before the Board of Appeal of EUIPO. 

Before you start using a particular sign or file a trademark application, our team of specialists is on hand to help you carry out a trademark search which would aim to reveal any potential conflict with prior rights. Should scope for such be uncovered, we would always recommend suitable amendments to the identification of goods and services in order to avoid unnecessary disputes further down the line.

In the course of filing your new trademark application we provide essential assistance in properly identifying and accurately defining the list of goods and services you intend to associate with your proposed trademark.

A further and very specific advantage of engaging Danubia to represent your EU trademark lies in the fact that if Hungarian is chosen as the language of the proceeding, any attack on the trademark from abroad must rely on using either Hungarian or English, which we have the right to select as a second working language. In any subsequent litigation the adverse party is then obliged to choose English, which in itself is significantly more favourable than pursuing litigation proceedings in either German or French.

The portfolio of services we offer before EUIPO with respect to designs is broadly similar to those afforded our trademark clients. We would, however, recommend engaging an expert to examine the way in which the subject design is illustrated and, where necessary, to provide recommendations regarding different views and representations of the design. This requires skill and experience as the illustration alone defines the scope of protection the design may enjoy.

Although obtaining design protection may appear straightforward, once the design has been registered you do still need to effectively make sure it is not being infringed and to enforce the scope of protection it enjoys. In this respect the correct and most appropriate illustration of the design’s features, the appearance of its lines, contours, colours, shape, texture and materials has great significance.