TRADEMARK | The EUIPO Board of Appeal on misleading use of the word “COFFEE” for tea-based products

On 16 December 2024, the EUIPO Board of Appeal (“BoA”) issued its decision in case R 1234/2024-5, concerning an opposition to a European trade mark application  “EINSTEIN KAFFEE” for tea-based beverages. In the first instance proceeding, the EUIPO maintained that the applied-for trademark may mislead consumers into mistakenly believing that the goods claimed contained coffee and therefore did not allow the trademark application to proceed to registration. The BoA confirmed these findings, deeming the trademark application misleading according to Article 7.1 of Regulation (EC) no. 1001/2017, on the grounds that consumers would likely perceive the trademark “EINSTEIN KAFFE” as designating a coffee-based product manufactured by an individual or entity named Einstein.

Newsletter n. 104 – February 2025