Noncontractual liability - Directive 89/104/EEC - Trade marks - Official euro symbol.

«(Non-contractual liability – Directive 89/104/EEC – Trade marks – Official euro symbol)» Summary of the Judgment 1.. Procedure – Introduction of new pleas in law in the course of the proceedings – Conditions – New plea – Definition (Rules of Procedure of the Court of First Instance, Art. 48(2)) 2.. Actions for damages – Distinct nature – Exhaustion of domestic remedies – Exception – Impossibility of obtaining satisfaction before national courts – Infringement of a registered trade mark (Arts 235 EC and 288, second para., EC) 3.. Approximation of laws – Trade marks – Directive 89/104 – Right of the owner of a registered trade mark to contest its unlawful use – Sign identical or similar to the trade mark – Use in the course of trade – Definition – Use of the official euro symbol to designate the single currency – Not included (Council Directive 89/104, Art. 5(1)(b)) 4.. Approximation of laws – Trade marks – Directive 89/104 – Right of the owner of a registered trade mark to contest its unlawful use – Likelihood of confusion – Assessment – Likelihood of association – Insufficient (Council Directive 89/104, Art. 5(1)(b)) 5.. Non-contractual liability – Conditions – Lawful act – Real damage, causal link and unusual and special damage – Cumulative nature (Art. 288, second para., EC) JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE (Fifth Chamber)10 April 2003 (1) ((Non-contractual liability – Directive 89/104/EEC – Trade marks – Official euro symbol)) applicants, v defendant, THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (Fifth Chamber), having regard to the written procedure and further to the hearing on 20 June 2002, gives the following On those grounds, THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE (Fifth Chamber) Cooke García-Valdecasas Lindh H. Jung R. García-Valdecasas Registrar President 1 – Language of the case: English.