ARZINGER successfully defended the interests of LiveScore Limited in the Supreme Court
ARZINGER successfully defended the interests of the world-renowned real-time sports results aggregator, LiveScore Limited, in a dispute concerning the early revocation of the Ukrainian trade mark registration for LIVESCORE.
The project was handled by ARZINGER’s Intellectual Property practice team, with procedural support from the Dispute Resolution practice, and concerned securing legal protection for the LIVESCORE brand in Ukraine.
The Company attempted to register the LIVESCORE brand in Ukraine; however, this was prevented by a third party’s previously registered trademark, which was confusingly similar to the Company’s trademark. Despite its formal presence in the register, this trademark was not actually in use, particularly in the gambling sector, and created an artificial barrier to the registration of the Company’s trademark in Ukraine. The ARZINGER team successfully proved its non-use, paving the way for the registration of LIVESCORE.
The Supreme Court upheld ARZINGER’s position and noted that the ban on the gambling business, which the trademark owner had cited as a valid reason for non-use of the trademark, was in place even before its registration. Consequently, this circumstance was predictable, and the trademark owner had voluntarily accepted the risk of non-use.
The decision is of significant importance for trademark protection practice, as it clarifies the criteria for "valid reasons" for non-use of a trademark and, for the first time, applies the concept of voluntarily accepting the risk of non-use.
The project was handled by ARZINGER’s intellectual property practice team, including former senior associate Ihor Shyshko, under the leadership of partner Kateryna Oliinyk. Litigation support for the case was provided by the dispute resolution practice team, including counsel Andrii Tyshchenko, former senior associate Iryna Hutnik and associate Yana Nesterenko, under the overall supervision of founding and senior partner Sergii Shkliar.