PIL instrument(s)

Case number and/or case name

LG Düsseldorf, 09.02.2012 - 14c O 292/11

Details of the court

Germany, First Instance

Articles referred to by the court

Date of the judgement

08 February 2012

Appeal history

CJEU's case law cited by the court

Summary

Both the claimant and the defendant produce and distribute tablet computers. According to the claimant, the defendant made use of the claimants’ registered designs without any authorisation and thereby violated rules of fair competition. According to Art. 6 (1) Rome-II-Regulation, the law applicable to a non-contractual obligation arising out of an act of unfair competition shall be the law of the country where competitive relations or the collective interests of consumers are, or are likely to be, affected. The Court therefore applied German competition law (UWG). In respect of the claimed infringement of intellectual property rights, the Court applied the Community Design Patent Regulation (Council Regulation (EC) No. 6/2002). The Court held that the defendant had not produced and distributed unauthorized imitations of the claimants’ tablet and had therefore not infringed German competition laws.