is a line in the lyrics of a Jennifer Lopez song. The song somehow flopped, but the shoes  are a legend and commonly recognized by their famous red soles. And because of those shoes the eyes of fashionistas and lawyers are fixed on a law suit that was filed by Christian Louboutin against Yves Saint Laurent  before a Federal Court in Manhattan just recently. Subject matter is of course the famous red sole that Louboutin has registered as a trademark with the US Patent and Trademark Office. He also has pending applications in the European Union - among others as referred to a so-called "position mark". Louboutin is suing Yves Saint Laurent now because in the latest collection the red soled shoes (the “Palais Pump“ and the „Palais Slingback“) were featured. Louboutin considers this an infringement of his trademark(s). Read more about „Throwing on my Louboutins“,

For the first time a German court had to decide on the question if the use of the Facebook “Like” button on an internet sales page complied with the rules against unfair competition, if the button was placed without indicating that data of logged-in Facebook users would be transmitted to Facebook. The decision by the Regional Court of Berlin dated 14 March 2011 meanwhile published in German is of great interest with respect to the question of infringement of (German) unfair competition laws. Read more about Embedding a „Like“ Button is not unfair competition.

The German Federal Patent Court (Bundespatentgericht - BPatG) has confirmed the cancellation of the trademark „Neuschwanstein“. The trademark “Neuschwanstein” had been registered for a wide range of goods and services but after a cancellation request because of its lack of distinctiveness according to § 8 II No. 1 German Trademark Act (GTA), the German Patent and Trademark Office (GPTO) had cancelled it. Upon the appeal the German Federal Patent Court had confirmed the missing distinctiveness for the following reasons: The expression “Neuschwanstein” is the name of the world famous castle and tourist attraction in Bavaria, that was originally built for King Ludwig I and that has reached an outstanding cultural and historical importance and recognition. Read more about "Neuschwanstein" is not a trademark!

If you are interested in obtaining a trademark or a design you surely have visited the websites of the relevant offices like GPTO (DPMA), OHIM or WIPO and you will have discovered that they provide a useful guidance and all necessary forms you need for registering your trademark or your design. So why should you spend money hiring an IP-lawyer? Why shouldn’t you do it all by yourself, you might ask yourself. It’s true you can do it all by yourself. Most offices do not require that you are represented by a lawyer. But registering trademarks and designs by yourself bears a great risk that can most probably make the registration an extremely expensive adventure that might not even end with obtaining the trademark or the design. Here are four reasons why hiring us as your IP-lawyers is a good investment: Read more about Why you need us for registering trademarks and designs?