Regulation (EU) 2015/2424 amending Council Regulation 207/2009 on the Community trade mark (“New Regulation”) and Directive (EU) 2015/2436 to approximate the laws of the Member States relating to trade marks of 16 December 2015 (“Directive”, together with the New Regulation, the “European Trademark Package”) have been adopted with a view to modernising and harmonising the national and European trademark legislations.
The main changes of the New Regulation already entered into force in March 2016. Other specific provisions mainly relating to procedural aspects will be applicable starting from 1 October 2017. The Directive must be transposed into national laws at the latest by January 2019 (or 2023 for revocation and invalidity procedures).
The Directive’s main aim is to align the various national trademark legislations with the new European trademark framework imposed by the New Regulation. Thus, the changes introduced by way of the European Trademark Package concern Community trademarks and national or Benelux trademarks.
More information on the content of the European Trademark Package is available in the article “Modernisation of the European trademark system” published on our website.
