The Israel Trademark System
3-D Trademarks and Trademark Slogans in Israel
A Question & Answer series dealing with legal questions about the Israel Trademark System, rights and obligations, and practicalities.
Series Editor: Aaron Lewin, Israel Attorney at Law, Head of Trademarks at JMB Davis Ben-David
Contributors: Ms. Miriam Samis, Ms. Dodiva Grant, and Mr. Eviatar Aron
For trademark related inquiries contact Mr. Ivan Lipshitz, Managing Attorney Trademarks, Designs & Related Fields Ivan.Lipshitz@jmbdavis.com.
Problematic types of marks – 3-D marks and slogans
Although both three-dimensional trademarks and slogans are eligible for trademark registration in Israel, the Israel Trademark Office imposes a harsh standard in examining applications for these types of trademarks.
THREE-DIMENSIONAL TRADEMARKS, such as bottles or product shapes, are generally viewed by the ITO as inherently lacking distinctiveness. Successful registration of a 3D mark often depends upon showing that the 3D shape includes an additional feature (such as the applicant’s name) that provides distinctiveness or that the 3D shape itself has acquired distinctiveness through extensive use in Israel.
SLOGANS are viewed with suspicion as being either descriptive or self-laudatory, and therefore incapable of functioning as indicators of origin. The examiners typically demand that an applicant demonstrate that a slogan functions in fact as a trademark, i.e., that consumers identify the goods with the applicant by means of the slogan alone, without reference to the applicant’s name or house brand.
Find the other parts in this series here:
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 1
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 2
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 3
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 4
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 5
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 6
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 7
From the Legal to the Practical: The Israel Trademark System Part 8
