Judgment of the General Court of 23 September 2015 — Appelrath-Cüpper v OHIM — Ann Christine Lizenzmanagement (AC)

(Case T-60/13) ¹

(Community trade mark — Opposition proceedings — Application for figurative Community trade mark AC — Earlier figurative national and international trade marks AC ANN CHRISTINE and earlier figurative Community trade marks AC ANN CHRISTINE OCEAN and AC ANN CHRISTINE INTIMATE — Relative ground for refusal — No likelihood of confusion — Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 207/2009)

Language of the case: English

Parties

Applicant: Reiner Appelrath-Cüpper Nachf. GmbH (Cologne, Germany) (represented by: C. Schumann and A. Berger, lawyers)

Defendant: Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) (represented by: J. Crespo Carrillo, acting as Agent)

Other party to the proceedings before the Board of Appeal of OHIM, intervening before the General Court: Ann Christine Lizenzmanagement GmbH & Co. KG (Vienna, Austria) (represented by: M. Hartmann, N. Voß and S. Fröhlich, lawyers)

Re:

Action brought against the decision of the Fourth Board of Appeal of OHIM of 28 November 2012 (Case R 108/2012-4), concerning opposition proceedings between Ann Christine Lizenzmanagement GmbH & Co. KG and Reiner Appelrath-Cüpper Nachf. GmbH.

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:

Orders that the decision of the Fourth Board of Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) (OHIM) of 28 November 2012 (Case R 108/2012-4) is annulled in so far as it upheld in part the opposition brought by Ann Christine Lizenzmanagement GmbH & Co. KG;

Orders OHIM to bear its own costs and to pay half the costs incurred by Reiner Appelrath-Cüpper Nachf. GmbH;

Orders Ann Christine Lizenzmanagement GmbH & Co. KG to bear its own costs and to pay half the costs incurred by Reiner Appelrath-Cüpper Nachf. GmbH for the purposes of the proceedings before the Board of Appeal.

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¹     OJ C 101, 6.4.2013.