In a recent ruling the Board of Appeal (BoA) ruled that the Advertising Code Committee (ACC) and the BoA may only rule that an advertisement violates the GDPR when this is abundantly clear.
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The Butcher vs. The Butcher Shop, The Baker vs. The Bakery: what can the owner of a descriptive trade name do against another company with a descriptive trade name? This question occupied many a lawyer with an interest in intellectual property law. The Supreme Court has now made a decision in its ruling in DOC Dairy Partners/Dairy Partners.
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Can the Royal Association Homeopathy Netherlands state on its website that several scientific studies show efficacy in many indications? This was the starting point of a principle procedure at the Advertising Code Committee. The complainant, adamantly opposed to homeopathy, felt that the text should be removed.
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Spring time! Chambers and World Trademark Review have just published their rankings. We are proud of their nice words about Hoogenraad & Haak. Some comments.
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Great news: after an excellent student internship, Myrna Teeuw stayed with us as a paralegal.
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Earlier we wrote that as a consumer you are not allowed to post false reviews. Now the subject is use of (false) reviews by a trader. At the moment it is not literally stated in the law that traders are not allowed to post false reviews, but under certain circumstances this can be misleading.
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The Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance (GALA) released its year-end round-up of major advertising law developments in more than fifty countries around the world – from Argentina to Zimbabwe. Daniël Haije (Global Vice-Chairman of GALA) wrote the chapter on the Netherlands. GALA is an alliance of lawyers located throughout the world with expertise and experience in advertising, marketing and promotion law. The alliance is ranked as a Band 1 legal network in Chambers Global.
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A stylised crocodile on children's clothing. Infringement of the Lacoste trademark or not? In the first instance, HEMA went unpunished; on appeal, Lacoste came out on top. The key question in the case is whether the public at large (you, me, everyone) perceives the image as a trademark. In other words: is it an indication of origin (according to Lacoste)? Or is it just an innocent decoration (according to HEMA)?
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It feels like an eternity ago. A couple of months ago we were actually allowed to sit on the terrace and in the sun, while enjoying a beer, and forgetting about corona for a moment. Due to the compulsory closure, the hospitality industry had already had a hard time at that time. That is why the Dutch Brewers gave the catering industry a helping hand by launching the "Golden Moments are experienced with beer" campaign.
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Douglas's television commercial for its anti-wrinkle cream is misleading. Douglas wanted to tell consumers that cellular saccharification can have a detrimental effect on the skin as the years go by. And that its product would be the solution. But the statement 'sugar causes wrinkles' is misleading.
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For the time being, so-called botanical products may make a health claim, for example, for a vitamin supplement. This is despite the fact that EFSA has still not assessed the associated scientific files. This is because the outcome of political wrangling over how to assess the evidence for the claim has been awaited for years. But the reins have been tightened!
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The new Dutch Media Act came into force on 1 November 2020. This has consequences for video platforms such as YouTube, and possibly also for vloggers.
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De Vegetarische Slager (“The Vegetarian Butcher”) scores one hit after the other: from vegetarian chicken pieces to vegan petit filet a l'Americain, the Dutch are discovering these meat substitutes more and more. Recently, the Advertising Code Committee received a complaint about a radio commercial in which BBQ King Jord Althuizen cooks with the vegan Bofkipburger of the popular meat substitute brand.
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Anyone who, after reading the title of this article, was hoping for a giveaway from Hoogenraad & Haak will unfortunately be disappointed, that is not what this article is about. The holidays are coming up, this means a lot of gifts will be given.
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Do you still recognise this car? The trademark on the racing monster of Crockett and Tubbs from the 80s and 90s was recently the subject of a case before the Court of Justice in Luxembourg. Ferrari would not have used the "Testarossa" trademark genuinely in recent years and therefore its removal from the registers was claimed.
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Many manufacturers are thrilled when it turns out that their product has been tested by the Consumers' Association as Best Buy (“Beste Koop”) or Best Tested (“Beste uit de Test”). After payment, they can use the Consumers' Association's figurative trademark in their advertisements. But can you also proudly mention Consumers’ Association awards from the past?
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There is a rule in trademark law that descriptive indications may not be monopolised as trademarks. These indications must remain free for everyone to use. For example, the word "Apple" cannot be a trademark for apples.
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In the summer of 2019, New York Pizza launched pizzas with a cauliflower-bottom. This did not go unnoticed. The YouTube clip contained a big wink to telephone sex lines and was therefore able to go through the brackets - it was obviously a parody. For the posters at bus stops nationwide - containing a naked woman with two cauliflowers in front of her breasts - things didn't end so well.
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The use of a celebrity's lookalike in advertising is allowed if it is clear to the public that it concerns a lookalike, the public will not think that the real celebrity supports the advertiser's products, and no actual damage will occur. This was decided by the Amsterdam Court of Appeal on 2 June 2020 in the case between Max Verstappen and Picnic.
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