英语新闻丨LV商标案：公共文化元素的保护边界

A trademark dispute now before the Beijing Intellectual Property Court (BIPC) could help clarify one of the most important questions in China's trademark system: Where should the boundary lie for the registration and protection of commercial brands derived from public cultural elements?

北京知识产权法院正在审理的一起商标争议，有望厘清中国商标制度中最重要的问题之一：源于公共文化元素的商业品牌，其注册与保护的边界究竟在哪里？

On July 16, the BIPC heard an administrative trademark lawsuit filed by Louis Vuitton Malletier against the China National Intellectual Property Administration, with Huang Minyao, a clothing business operator from Shantou, Guangdong province, as a third party.
7月16日，北京知识产权法院开庭审理了路易威登马利耶诉国家知识产权局商标权行政纠纷一案，广东汕头服装经营者黄敏瑶作为第三人参加诉讼。

A four-petal floral design trademark that Huang applied for is deemed by LV to be confusingly similar to its iconic monogram pattern.
黄敏瑶申请注册的四瓣花图形商标，被路易威登认为与其标志性的Monogram图案构成近似，容易导致混淆。

The dispute arose after CNIPA rejected LV's challenge to the petal-shaped trademark registered by Huang.
此前，国家知识产权局驳回了路易威登对该花瓣图形商标的无效宣告请求，争议由此产生。

It is the sixth trademark lawsuit LV has filed against CNIPA, having won three and lost two of the previous five cases.
这是路易威登针对国家知识产权局提起的第六起商标诉讼，此前五起案件中，路易威登三胜两负。

Unlike the earlier high-profile dispute between LV and Shenzhen-based Molly Tea Catering Management, this is not an infringement case but an administrative lawsuit that challenges the legality of a regulatory decision.
与早前路易威登与深圳“莫莉茶饮”公司之间备受关注的那起纠纷不同，本案并非侵权诉讼，而是针对行政机关行政决定合法性提起的行政诉讼。

The two cases are deeply connected in legal principle, but administrative trademark disputes differ fundamentally from infringement lawsuits in nature, subject matter, and standards of proof.
两案在法律原理上深度关联，但商标行政诉讼与侵权诉讼在性质、审理对象和证明标准上存在根本差异。

Infringement litigation determines whether conduct falls within the scope of an exclusive trademark right, whereas administrative litigation examines the legality of decisions made by trademark authorities on registration applications, oppositions, or invalidation requests.
侵权诉讼解决的是被诉行为是否落入商标专用权保护范围的问题，行政诉讼则审查商标行政机关在注册申请、异议或无效宣告等程序中作出的决定是否合法。

This means BIPC will not rule on whether Huang infringed LV's rights, but will review whether CNIPA properly applied the current Trademark Law provisions concerning distinctiveness, similarity, well-known trademark protection, and public interest reservations when it rejected LV's plea for invalidation.
这意味着北京知识产权法院不会就黄敏瑶是否侵犯路易威登权利作出裁判，而是审查国家知识产权局在驳回路易威登无效宣告请求时，是否正确适用了现行《商标法》关于显著性、近似性、驰名商标保护和公共利益保留等条款的规定。

This requires the court to return to the authorization conditions under the Trademark Law.
这要求法院回归《商标法》关于商标授权条件的规定。

Under the current provision, signs consisting solely of generic names, graphic elements, place names, or other features lacking inherent distinctiveness — including public cultural resources such as traditional patterns, natural imagery and geometric designs — shall not be registered unless they have acquired distinctiveness through use and become readily identifiable with particular goods or services.
根据现行规定，仅有本商品的通用名称、图形、地名或者其他缺乏显著特征的标志——包括传统纹样、自然图形、几何图形等公共文化资源——不得作为商标注册，但经过使用取得显著特征、便于识别的除外。

If the disputed trademark involves public cultural elements such as traditional patterns or natural floral designs that typically possess weak inherent distinctiveness, the court will focus on whether CNIPA fully considered this factor and rigorously examined evidence of acquired "secondary meaning".
如果争议商标涉及传统纹样或自然花卉图案等公共文化元素，因其通常自身显著性较弱，法院将重点审查国家知识产权局是否充分考虑了这一因素，并严格审查了“获得显著性”的证据。

Public reaction to the LV-Molly Tea infringement case has already demonstrated widespread concern over attempts to register and monopolize traditional motifs such as the four-petal flower or Baoxiang patterns.
公众对路易威登与“莫莉茶饮”侵权案的广泛关注，已经反映出社会对四瓣花、宝相纹等传统纹样被注册和垄断的普遍担忧。

At the authorization stage, the issue is even more fundamental: If public cultural elements inherently lack distinctiveness and the applicant fails to prove that the symbol has acquired an independent identity distinct from its public-domain meaning, is administrative approval justified in the first place?
在授权阶段，问题更为根本：如果公共文化元素本身缺乏显著性，申请人又未能证明该标志已获得独立于公共领域含义的识别功能，那么行政机关的核准是否还有依据？

Trademark law is not meant to enclose public cultural resources as private property through registration, but to protect commercial identifiers that distinguish goods or services and thereby promote fair competition.
商标法的目的不是通过注册将公共文化资源圈定为私有财产，而是保护能够区分商品或服务来源的商业标识，从而促进公平竞争。

For traditional cultural elements that have public interest, trademark examination should adopt a prudent stance.
对于具有公共属性的传统文化元素，商标审查应当采取审慎态度。

Regulators must prevent market players from privatizing commonly available design resources through registration and obstructing other operators' fair use of cultural elements.
监管者必须防止市场主体通过注册将公共领域的设计资源私有化，阻碍其他经营者对文化元素的合理使用。

On the other hand, they must respect the goodwill accumulated by enterprises through creative transformation and sustained commercial use.
另一方面，也必须尊重企业通过创造性转化和持续商业使用所积累的商誉。

The key lies in balancing "distinctiveness" against "public domain preservation" without lowering examination standards for auxiliary graphic elements simply because an applicant has a formidable reputation in other product categories.
关键在于平衡“显著性”与“公共领域保护”，不能因申请人在其他商品类别上享有较高声誉，就降低对其商标中辅助图形要素的审查标准。

In this case, LV may argue that its well-known trademark deserves cross-class protection.
在本案中，路易威登可能会主张其驰名商标应获得跨类保护。

However, China's Trademark Law and related judicial interpretations clearly state that the recognition of a well-known trademark should follow the principles of "case-by-case determination" and "protection as needed".
然而，中国的《商标法》及相关司法解释明确规定，驰名商标的认定应当遵循“个案认定”和“按需保护”的原则。

Cross-class protection is justified only if there is evidence that the public would be misled and the registrant's interests are likely to be damaged. In this administrative proceeding, the court needs to determine whether CNIPA correctly applied this standard.
只有在有证据证明公众可能产生误认、且注册人利益可能因此受损的情况下，跨类保护才有依据。在本行政诉讼中，法院需要审查国家知识产权局是否正确适用了这一标准。

It is worth noting that the protection of well-known trademarks cannot extend indefinitely.
值得指出的是，驰名商标的保护不能无限扩张。

Even if some LV trademark symbols enjoy extremely high reputation, it does not automatically mean that every separately registered graphic element — particularly those resembling public cultural motifs — enjoys the same level of protection across all categories.
即使路易威登的部分商标标志享有极高知名度，也并不自动意味着其注册的每一个图形要素——尤其是那些与公共文化元素相似的图形——都能在所有类别上获得同等保护。

Judicial review should guard against "goodwill spillover", whereby a brand's overall reputation is indiscriminately poured into each registered element, thereby improperly extending the exclusivity of the trademark.
司法审查应当警惕“商誉溢出”现象，避免品牌整体声誉不加区分地覆盖到每一个注册要素，导致商标权不当扩张。

Although this is an administrative case, its ruling will have a significant effect on similar cases in the future.
虽然本案是行政诉讼，但其判决对未来类似案件将产生重要影响。

The judgment should accomplish three objectives: First, it should strictly examine the source of distinctiveness of the disputed mark, distinguishing inherent distinctiveness from acquired distinctiveness, and ensure that the natural recognizability of public cultural elements is not mistaken for the trademark owner's original contribution.
判决应当实现三重目标：第一，严格审查争议商标显著性的来源，区分固有显著性与获得显著性，确保公共文化元素的天然可识别性不被误认为商标权人的原创贡献。

Second, it should accurately apply the principle of "protection as needed" for well-known trademarks and prevent the abuse of cross-class protection.
第二，准确适用驰名商标“按需保护”原则，防止跨类保护被滥用。

Third, it should fully address public interest considerations in its reasoning, clarifying the protection boundaries for trademarks comprising public cultural elements and leaving adequate room for fair use by the public and other market entities.
第三，在裁判说理中充分回应公共利益考量，明确含有公共文化元素的商标的保护边界，为公众和其他市场主体保留合理使用空间。

A trademark right is essentially a tool for market identification, not a shackle on cultural resources.
商标权本质上是市场标识工具，而非文化资源的枷锁。

As China continues strengthening intellectual property protection while fostering a fair and competitive business environment, safeguarding the public domain at the trademark authorization stage becomes increasingly important.
中国在持续强化知识产权保护的同时，也在着力营造公平竞争的市场环境。在此背景下，在商标授权阶段保护公共领域的重要性日益凸显。

Traditional patterns, natural imagery, and geometric designs should remain part of humanity's shared treasury of creativity rather than become legal barriers enabling a handful of enterprises to monopolize markets.
传统纹样、自然图形和几何设计，应当继续作为人类共同的创作财富，而不应成为少数企业垄断市场的法律屏障。

The BIPC ruling may well provide a landmark answer on how China's trademark system can balance private incentives with public interest.
北京知识产权法院的判决，有望就中国商标制度如何平衡私人激励与公共利益提供标志性答案。

monogram pattern /ˈmɒnəɡræm ˈpætən/ Monogram图案（LV标志性花纹）

invalidation request /ɪnˌvælɪˈdeɪʃən rɪˈkwest/无效宣告请求

distinctiveness /dɪˈstɪŋktɪvnəs/显著性

inherent distinctiveness /ɪnˈherənt dɪˈstɪŋktɪvnəs/固有显著性

cross-class protection /krɒs klɑːs prəˈtekʃən/跨类保护

case-by-case determination /keɪs baɪ keɪs dɪˌtɜːmɪˈneɪʃən/个案认定

protection as needed /prəˈtekʃən æz ˈniːdɪd/按需保护

goodwill spillover /ɡʊdˈwɪl ˈspɪləʊvə/商誉溢出