Action brought on 13 September 2010 - ara v OHIM - Allrounder (Representation of a sports shoe bearing the letter A on the side)

(Case T-397/10)

Language in which the application was lodged: German

Parties

Applicant: ara AG (Langenfeld, Germany) (represented by: M. Gail, lawyer)

Defendant: Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs)

Other party to the proceedings before the Board of Appeal of OHIM: Allrounder SARL (Saarburg, France)

Form of order sought

Annul the decision of the First Board of Appeal of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) of 23 June 2010 in Case R 1543/2009-1;

order the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

Applicant for a Community trade mark: Allrounder SARL.

Community trade mark concerned: Figurative mark representing a sports shoe with the letter 'A' on the side, for goods and services in classes 16, 18 and 25.

Proprietor of the mark or sign cited in the opposition proceedings: The applicant.

Mark or sign cited in opposition: National word mark 'A' for goods in classes 9, 18 and 25.

Decision of the Opposition Division: Opposition rejected.

Decision of the Board of Appeal: Appeal dismissed as inadmissible.

Pleas in law: Infringement of Article 81 of Regulation (EC) No 207/2009 ¹ in so far as the Board of Appeal incorrectly proceeded on the basis that the office arrangements as described by the appellant's representatives were not such as to prove that all due care required by the circumstances was taken, and accordingly rejected the application for re-establishment of the appellant's rights with respect to the time-limit for production of the statement of grounds of appeal.

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¹ - Council Regulation (EC) No 207/2009 of 26 February 2009 on the Community trade mark (OJ 2009 L 78, p. 1).