Louis Vuitton denied right to trademark Damier Checkerboard pattern

Louis Vuitton has been denied the right to monopolize the checkerboard
pattern, following the ruling from the European Union General Court. The
decision comes after the luxury label first registered a trademark for its
brown Damier check pattern in 1998 and the subsequential trademark for the
black version ten years later.

However, the First Board of Appeal of the Office Harmonization in the
Internal Market previously took away Louis Vuitton’s trademark for the
checkerboard pattern in 2011 and Louis Vuitton’s attempts to have decision
reversed have been denied.

The General Court, based in Luxembourg, stated that in its decision “the
checkerboard pattern, as represented in the contested trademark, was a
basic and banal feature composed of very simple elements.” Since the
pattern was lacking distinguishing features, such as a logo, the pattern
cannot be seen as the sole property of Louis Vuitton, said the court.

The luxury fashion house, part of giant conglomerate LVMH, has yet to
reveal if it aims to appeal the European Union’s General Court ruling.