(AGENPARL) – Thu 03 July 2025 Newsletter
Weeks XXVIII – XXIX: 7th July – 18th July 2025
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Week XXVIII: 7th to 11th July
Wednesday 9th July
General Court
Judgments in Cases T-163/23 Fritz Egger and Others v ECHA (Melamine) and T167/23 LAT Nitrogen Piesteritz and Cornerstone v ECHA (Melamine)
(Research and Technological Development and Space)
On August 26, 2022, the German competent authority submitted to the European
Chemicals Agency (ECHA) a dossier supporting the identification of melamine as a
substance of very high concern, i.e. a chemical substance dangerous to human health
Lily Mahon
and the environment within the meaning of the REACH Regulation.
assisted in the
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After receiving comments from interested parties and following a unanimous vote by
the Member State Committee (MSC), ECHA adopted a decision on December 16, 2022
identifying melamine as a substance of very high concern on the grounds that it could
have serious effects on human health and the environment.
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A number of companies producing or using melamine in Germany, Austria, Belgium,
Switzerland and the United States – including LAT Nitrogen Piesteritz GmbH,
Cornerstone Chemical Co and Fritz Egger GmbH – challenged this decision before the
General Court of the European Union seeking its annulment.
Background Documents T-163/23
Background Documents T-167/23
There will be one press release for these cases.
Wednesday 9th July
General Court
Judgment in Cases T-1170/23 Spin Master Toys UK v EUIPO – Verdes Innovations
Communications Directorate
Press and Information Unit
curia.europa.eu
Newsletter
Weeks XXVIII – XXIX: 7th July – 18th July 2025
(Shape of a cube with faces having a grid structure), T-1171/23 Spin Master Toys
All times are 9:30
(CET) unless
otherwise stated.
Don’t forget to
check the diary
on our website
UK v EUIPO – Verdes Innovations (Shape of a cube with faces having a grid
structure), T-1172/23 Spin Master Toys UK v EUIPO – Verdes Innovations (Shape of
a cube with faces having a grid structure) and T-1173/23 Spin Master Toys UK v
EUIPO – Verdes Innovations (Shape of a cube with faces having a grid structure)
(Intellectual, Industrial and Commercial Policy – Trade Marks)
for details of
other cases.
In 2013, Verdes Innovations SA submitted to the EUIPO four applications for a
declaration of invalidity of the European Union trademarks registered by the
predecessor of Spin Master Toys UK between 2008 and 2012 for ‘three-dimensional
puzzles’ (Rubik’s cube).
The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) granted the requests for a
declaration of invalidity of the contested trademarks. It considered that the colours of
the squares on each side of the cube were an essential feature of the mark and an
integral part of its shape. EUIPO thus considered that the combination of the six
different colours was necessary to obtain a technical result and concluded, in
substance, that the said trademarks had been registered contrary to European law.
Spin Master Toys UK challenged these decisions before the General Court of the
European Union, arguing that the contested trademark has essential characteristics
which are not constituted exclusively by the shape and which, in any event, are not
necessary to obtain a technical result.
Background Documents T-1170/23
Background Documents T-1171/23
Background Documents T-1172/23
Background Documents T-1173/23
There will be one press release for these cases.
Wednesday 9th July
General Court
Judgment in Cases T-304/23 sprd.net v EUIPO (Capital ‘I’ and red heart on the left
breast of a garment), T-305/24 sprd.net v EUIPO (Upper-case ‘I’ and red heart on
an inner garment label) and T-306/24 sprd.net v EUIPO (Capital ‘I’ and red heart
on an outer garment at the nape of the neck)
(Intellectual, Industrial and Commercial Policy – Trade Marks)
In 2022, the German company sprd.net applied to the European Union Intellectual
Property Office (EUIPO) to register three EU trademarks as position marks for clothing,
Newsletter
Weeks XXVIII – XXIX: 7th July – 18th July 2025
including t-shirts, sweatshirts and pullovers.
According to the description provided by sprd.net, this is a sign or logo consisting of a
capital “i” and a red heart, placed on a garment on the left breast, on an inner label of
a garment or on an outer garment at the nape of the neck. The dotted lines represent
the outline of an example garment and illustrate the position of the respective mark;
they do not form part of the marks applied for.
The EUIPO rejected the applications on the grounds that the marks applied for were
devoid of distinctive character, i.e. they did not distinguish the goods in question from
those of other companies. The sign would be understood immediately as the
expression “I like”. Nor would its position give it any distinctive character.
sprd.net challenged the EUIPO’s refusal decisions before the EU General Court.
Background Documents T-304/24
Background Documents T-305/24
Background Documents T-306/24
There will be one press release for these cases.
Wednesday 9th July
General Court
Judgment in Case T-1031/23 Kaili v Parliament
(Access to Documents)
By her action under Article 263 TFEU, Ms Eva Kaili, being a Member of the European
Parliament on the date on which the action was brought, seeks the annulment of a
decision of the European Parliament, by which the latter refused to grant public access
to documents under the EU Regulation regarding public access to European
Parliament, Council and Commission documents.
The request was made in the context of a request by the European Chief Prosecutor of
the EU Public Prosecutor’s Office to lift the privileges and immunities of two Members
of the EP including Ms Kaili. In the process of challenging the EPPO’s decision and that
of the EP President, Ms Kaili submitted an application to the Parliament for public
access to information and documents concerning irregularities in the management, by
Members of the European Parliament, of the allowances of accredited parliamentary
assistants.
By the contested decision, the Parliament refused to grant access to the documents
requested and confirmed its position that disclosure of those documents to the public
Newsletter
Weeks XXVIII – XXIX: 7th July – 18th July 2025
could undermine the protection of court proceedings.
Background Documents T-1031/23
There will be a press release for this case.
Wednesday 9th July
General Court
Judgment in Case T-534/24 Gotek
(Taxation)
On October 1, 2024, the General Court was given jurisdiction to give preliminary
rulings in six specific areas (see Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2019 and Press Release
No 125/24).
In this first reference for a preliminary ruling, the General Court is asked to interpret
certain rules of the Excise Duty Directive.
Following a tax audit, the Croatian tax authorities found that a company had wrongly
deducted VAT on the basis of false invoices relating to supplies of petroleum products
which, in reality, had never taken place. The company was then denied the right to
deduct input VAT.
In addition, pursuant to national legislation, the customs authorities demanded
payment of excise duties. They considered that these products should be considered
as having been released for consumption, even though they had never been physically
delivered.
The Croatian court, which the company had appealed to, asked the General Court
whether the national legislation providing for excise duty to be payable on fictitious
products appearing on false invoices is compatible with EU law.
Background Documents T-534/24
There will be a press release for this case.
Thursday 10th July
Opinion in Joined Cases C-722/23 Rugu and C-91/24 Aucroix
(Area of Freedom, Security and Justice – Judicial cooperation in criminal matters – Police
cooperation)
Newsletter
Weeks XXVIII – XXIX: 7th July – 18th July 2025
A Member State of the European Union issued a European arrest warrant for the
execution of a prison sentence against persons of Belgian nationality or residing in
Belgium: for one of these cases, the warrant was issued by Romania; for the other, by
Greece.
The Belgian judicial authorities refused to execute these warrants. In case C-722/23
Rugu, the judge considered that the conditions of detention in Romania threatened
the fundamental rights of the wanted person. In case C-91/24 Aucroix, the judge
referred to the mental deficiencies of the wanted person and the risk of inappropriate
detention in Greece.
It is on these grounds relating to fundamental rights, and in the name of combating
impunity for wanted persons, that the two Belgian courts concerned ask the Court
about the possibility of ordering the enforcement of the prison sentence in the
territory of the executing Member State, without obtaining the consent of the issuing
Member State.
Background Documents C-722/23
Background Documents C-91/24
There will be one press release for these cases.
Thursday 10th July
Opinion in Case C-797/23 Meta Platforms Ireland (Fair compensation)
(Consumer protection)
The digital revolution has profoundly disrupted the media sector, particularly the print
media, which is facing changing user habits, the rise of online press review services
and competition from new digital channels. These changes have led to a drastic drop
in publishers’ revenues, jeopardising their business model and their essential role in
democratic societies.
To address this, several legislative initiatives have been taken, including European
Union provisions introducing new intellectual property rights for press publishers.
However, these measures have been strongly criticised for their effectiveness and
legality.
In this case, the Court is called upon to rule on the compatibility of Italian legislation
transposing the Directive on copyright in the digital single market. That directive
introduces a specific neighbouring right for press publishers for the online use of their
publications by information society service providers (ISSPs) such as Meta Platforms
Ireland Limited (Meta).
Newsletter
Weeks XXVIII – XXIX: 7th July – 18th July 2025