Talking Point: Genuine use in the Community

Advocate General Sharpston’s opinion in Leno Merken BV v Hagelkruis Beheer BV (Case C-149/11) stated that the “use of a CTM within the borders of a single member state is not, of itself, necessarily sufficient to constitute genuine use of that trademark, because the territorial scope of the use is merely one of the factors to take into account in the assessment”.