Partners in Crime: The notion of “close connection” & international jurisdiction in EU trade mark infringement cases

Contacts

guillaume devillegas Module
Guillaume de Villegas

Counsel
Belgium

I am a counsel in our Brussels office where I have experience in all types of IP matters, with a particular focus on trade mark, copyright, design and patent law in the life sciences, retail & consumer, food & beverage, luxury goods and media & entertainment sectors.

camille vanpeteghem Module
Camille Vanpeteghem

Associate
Belgium

I am an associate in the Intellectual Property and Tech & Comms teams in Brussels. My work covers a wide range of legal areas, including copyright, software rights, IT contracts, community designs, trademarks, and general commercial law.

In its judgment of 7 September 2023, the CJEU clarified that an EU trade mark holder can sue multiple defendants, domiciled in different Member States, before the same EU trade mark court in the Member State of one of these defendants, insofar the trade mark infringement claims are closely connected. This is for instance the case when these defendants are merely connected by means of an exclusive distribution agreement.

Latest insights

More Insights
featured image

Skinny labels ≠ safe harbor: evolving liability for second medical use patents in Germany

6 minutes Dec 02 2025

Read More
Curiosity line pink background

New Judicial Interpretation from the Supreme People’s Court of China: Clarification of Role of Patent Evaluation Reports in Utility Model or Design Patent Infringement

4 minutes Dec 02 2025

Read More
featured image

Unified Patent Court Fees increase from 1 January 2026 - are you ready?

7 minutes Dec 01 2025

Read More