Trademark Exhaustion and Its Interface with EU Competition Law

Forthcoming in Research Handbook on IP Exhaustion and Parallel Imports, Irene Calboli & Edward Lee, eds., 2016.

24 Pages Posted: 11 May 2016

See all articles by Apostolos Chronopoulos

Apostolos Chronopoulos

Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London; Queen Mary Intellectual Property Research Institute (QMIPRI)

Spyros M. Maniatis

University of London - Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS)

Date Written: May 10, 2016

Abstract

The paper traces the evolution of the exhaustion doctrine in EU trademark law and examines its dialectic with the treatment of vertical restraints under EU competition law.

From a rigid rule not allowing the trademark proprietor to control the further commercialization of a trademarked good after its initial sale, the exhaustion doctrine in the EU has gradually developed to complex set of sub-rules balancing the diverse interests of traders, parallel importers, and the consuming public in a manner that resembles market regulation through unfair competition norms. In similar vein, the doctrine of exhaustion should encompass the potential benefits of post-sale restraints. The paper contains a critical analysis of the Court of Appeal’s ruling in Speciality European Pharma Ltd v Doncaster Pharmaceuticals Group Ltd & Madaus GmbH [2015] EWCA CIV 54.

Keywords: exhaustion, first sale doctrine, parallel imports, free-riding, partial impediment, intellectual property, trademarks, antitrust, competition, vertical restraints, pharmaceuticals, Euro-defences, regional exhaustion, international exhaustion

Suggested Citation

Chronopoulos, Apostolos and Maniatis, Spyros M., Trademark Exhaustion and Its Interface with EU Competition Law (May 10, 2016). Forthcoming in Research Handbook on IP Exhaustion and Parallel Imports, Irene Calboli & Edward Lee, eds., 2016., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2778247

Apostolos Chronopoulos (Contact Author)

Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London ( email )

United Kingdom

Queen Mary Intellectual Property Research Institute (QMIPRI) ( email )

Northgate House
67-69 LINCOLNS INN FIELDS
LONDON, WC2A 3JB
United Kingdom

Spyros M. Maniatis

University of London - Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS) ( email )

Charterhouse Square
London, EC1M 6AX
United Kingdom

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
703
Abstract Views
1,956
Rank
67,774
PlumX Metrics