Federal Court of Justice
The Federal Court of Justice in Germany (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) has dismissed the appeal by Jehovah’s Witnesses in Germany KdöR in trade mark dispute with JZ Help on Sep 26th, 2024. JZ corresponds to the abbreviation JW in German.
‘The plaintiff’s appeal against the non-admission of the appeal on points of law in the judgment of the Higher Regional Court of Frankfurt am Main – 6th Civil Senate – of 25 January 2024 is dismissed because the case is of no fundamental importance, the complaints based on the violation of fundamental procedural rights do not prevail and the further development of the law or the securing of uniform case law does not otherwise require a decision by the Court of Appeal.
The plaintiff shall bear the costs of the appeal proceedings.
Value in dispute: € 100,000’
(Value in dispute is not equal to the total cost of the court case, it is the basis for calculation)
Frankfurt Higher Regional Court
On Jan 25th, 2024, the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court rejected the appeal of the religious community Jehovah’s Witnesses in Germany in the trademark dispute with JZ Help.
Frankfurt Regional Court
On 17 August 2022, the Frankfurt Regional Court ruled against Jehovah’s Witnesses KdöR in the trademark dispute with JZ Help. The action brought by Jehovah’s Witnesses KdöR was dismissed. Jehovah’s Witnesses KdöR must bear the costs of the legal dispute.
Reasons for the court’s decision
The plaintiff (Jehovah’s Witnesses KdöR) cannot rely on a trade mark pursuant to Section 4 MarkenG. The plaintiff is not the proprietor of a registered trade mark. Nor is it the proprietor of a trade mark in use pursuant to Section 4 No. 2 MarkenG, as this would require that it has used the sign ‘JZ’ in the course of trade and that the sign has acquired a reputation as a trade mark within the relevant public.
[…] A mark is used in the course of trade if the use is in connection with a commercial activity […] aimed at an economic advantage […] In principle, it must be assumed that a religious community does not carry out any commercial activity […] The plaintiff has not claimed to have generated income with the congress […]
Furthermore, there is no likelihood of confusion or misleading information, because the public will not assume that the services offered by the defendant (JZ Help) originate from the plaintiff.
[…] In the absence of commercial activity, the reputation or reputation of the sign ‘JZ’ is irrelevant.