Trademark ‘war’
The war in Ukraine is causing human and economic suffering. The economic consequences also affect trademark law.
The Russian government has determined that trademark owners from 'unfriendly states' cannot claim damages if their trademark rights are infringed.
Another dangerous trend that strikes us is that the Russian Trademark Office seems to be less inclined to refuse new trademark applications that are highly similar to well-known Western trademarks. Western brands that often left Russia because of the war.
The Russian trademark register shows new applications for trademarks that are very similar to the 'M' of McDonald's, but also trademarks that are very similar to well-known Western trademarks such as Starbucks and Ikea.
Trademark owners may therefore encounter serious problems in enforcing their IP rights on Russian territory.
