Kammergericht: Black Friday trademark expired

The owner of the trademark “Black Friday” has failed in her attempt to prevent the cancellation of the disputed word mark. The “Black Friday” trademark was declared forfeited last Friday by the Berlin Superior Court, effective April 25, 2019. The Court of Appeal thus confirmed the cancellation of the trademark for all goods and services that had not already been canceled by the Federal Patent Court.

Already on April 15, 2021, the Berlin District Court, based on our lawsuit, had declared the trademark “Black Friday” forfeited for all of the more than 900 registered goods and services. According to the court, the trademark was not used for any of the registered goods and services in a way that preserved the rights.

The trademark owner appealed against the judgment before the Berlin Appellate Court – unsuccessfully, as has now been shown. By judgment of October 14, 2022, the decision of the first instance was upheld by the Kammergericht for all goods and services still registered after the decision of the Federal Patent Court. The appeal is not admitted. This leaves the trademark owner with no choice but to file a complaint of non-admission with the BGH.