King & Wood Mallesons has represented French shoe designer Christian Louboutin in his successful appeal before the Beijing High Court to trademark his signature red-soled, high-heeled shoes.

Louboutin had earlier been denied by the China Trademark Office and its Trademark Review and Adjudication Board on the grounds that the red soles lacked distinctiveness.

On appeal, the Beijing High Court ruled that a single-colour mark applied to a specific position on a product can be registered and recognised in China. Meanwhile, the Court confirmed that the review and trial of the registration applications of international brands seeking extended trademark protection in China should reference the international announcement of WIPO as its guidance. 

KWM said that this is a landmark case in China as it recognised for the first time that a single colour applied to a specific position can be registered and protected under China trademark law, which will serve as a good example for more international brands seeking IP protection in China. 

The KWM team on the case was led by Beijing partners Jing Xu and Hongbin Jiao.   

金杜代理“红鞋底”商标行政纠纷案赢得二审

金杜律师事务所代理法国著名时尚品牌克里斯提▪鲁布托在“红鞋底”商标行政纠纷案二审中赢得胜诉。

中国商标局及商标评审委员会曾以申请商标缺乏显著性为由驳回了鲁布托对该商标的中国领土延伸保护申请。

二审中，北京高院明确认定了申请商标“使用在鞋底位置的红色”属于限定使用位置的单一颜色商标，同时认定了限定使用位置的单一颜色可以作为商标在中国获得注册和受到保护。不仅如此，北京高院也同时确认了国际商标注册申请在中国领土延伸保护的审查、审理应当以国际知识产权组织的国际公告为准。

本案是中国首次认定限定使用位置的单一颜色可作为商标在中国获得注册和受到保护。金杜在新闻稿中称，本案对客户在中国的商标维权、品牌保护和全球商标布局具有重要意义，也会成为中国知识产权领域的里程碑案件。

本项目负责合伙人为北京办公室的徐静律师和矫鸿彬律师。

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