Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

AGA v UK Innovations: Marketing of retrofitted AGA cookers infringed trade marks; exhaustion and descriptive use defences rejected; director not joint tortfeasor; 2D/3D marks valid (England and Wales)

Published on: 30 July 2024

Published by a LexisNexis IP expert

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Article summary

AGA Rangemaster Group Ltd v UK Innovations Group Ltd and another [2024] EWHC 1727 (IPEC)

What are the practical implications of this case?

Marketing of re-sale goods

Sellers of second-hand goods should act carefully when promoting such items and when referring to the original seller’s brand name.
Re-sellers should take measures to avoid suggesting any commercial association with the original trade mark proprietor, thereby limiting the scope for potential third party enforcement actions.
References to the original brand on websites, and even on invoices, could be treated as part of the branding of the item being offered, rather than merely descriptive, innocuous marketing language.

Joint tortfeasance

As set out in Lifestyle Equities v Ahmed [2024] UKSC 17 (at para [137]), there are two distinct bases for accessory liability: (i) procuring an infringement; and (ii) assisting another to infringe pursuant to a common design.
In either case, the individual must possess the requisite knowledge to be liable as an accessory and thus be regarded as a joint tortfeasor.
It is important to note that ‘requisite knowledge’ for the purposes of accessory liability requires that...

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