Judgment of the General Court in case T-426/23

PRESS RELEASE No 191/24 Luxembourg, 13 November 2024 Judgment of the General Court in Case T-426/23 | Chiquita Brands v EUIPO – Compagnie financière de participation (Representation of a blue and yellow oval) The General Court confirms that Chiquita Brands’s blue and yellow oval is not eligible for protection as an EU trade mark in respect of fresh fruits Chiquita Brands (Florida, United States) obtained from the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) registration as an EU trade mark for several foodstuffs, including fresh fruits, in respect of the following figurative sign: In May 2020, Compagnie financière de participation (Marseilles, France) applied to EUIPO for a declaration that that mark was invalid. In its view, that mark was devoid of any distinctive character. The trade mark was declared invalid in May 2023, but only in respect of fresh fruits, including bananas. EUIPO considered that the mark was devoid of any distinctive character for those goods and that Chiquita Brands had not established that it had acquired distinctive character through use, which would have prevented its cancellation. Chiquita Brands challenges EUIPO’s decision before the General Court of the European Union. In its judgment, the General Court dismisses the action and thus confirms the invalidity of the mark in respect of fresh fruits. The General Court considers that neither the shape nor the blue and yellow colour scheme of the mark confers...