Eversheds Attorneys Ltd. successfully represented the footwear wholesaler F-Safety Oy in a design right dispute in the Market Court.
Kuomiokoski Oy claimed that the children’s ANGRY BIRDS winter boots that F-Safety Oy has had manufactured infringe the design rights of Kuomiokoski Oy’s KUOMA footwear, demanding F-Safety Oy and its distributors to stop the infringement. F-Safety brought an action for a ‘negative declaration’ in the Market Court in order to clarify that its ANGRY BIRDS footwear does not infringe Kuomiokoski’s design rights.
The Market Court found that an informed user’s overall impression of the ANGRY BIRDS boots is different from that of the designs of Kuomiokoski Oy’s KUOMA boots. In doing so, the Market Court confirmed in accordance with Section 41(2) of the Finnish Registered Designs Act that the KUOMA design registrations of Kuomiokoski Oy did not form an obstacle to F-Safety Oy’s business activities and obligated Kuomiokoski Oy to pay F-Safety Oy’s legal and party costs in their entirety.