A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S successful in trademark case about star logo
January, 2018 - Copenhagen, Denmark
On 31 January 2018 the Danish Eastern High Court found in favour of A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S in a trademark case against the company World Wide Traffic ApS about an infringement of A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S' seven-pointed star logo. The new decision upholds the Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court's decision from 2016. Plesner conducted the case on behalf of A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S.
he Danish Eastern High Court found - in line with the Danish Maritime and Commercial High Court - that the relevant customers would make a connection between World Wide Traffic ApS' figurative mark in the colours light blue and white and A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S' trademark that is very well-established and well-known and that World Wide Traffic ApS' use of the mark would result in improper exploitation of the distinctiveness of A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S' well-known figurative mark (section 4(2) of the Danish Consolidate Trade Marks Act).
Considering the fact that the managing director of World Wide Traffic ApS was a former employee of A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S, the Court also found that section 1 of the Danish Marketing Practices Act had been violated, see section 18. The Court awarded A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S DKK 10,000 as remuneration and damages for the violation that had taken place. Furthermore the counterparty must pay DKK 35,000 in legal costs.
Christian L. Bardenfleth, Attorney-at-Law and Plesner Partner, conducted the case on behalf of A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S.
