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Sector group

Trade marks

Trade marks enable brands to secure a strong competitive advantage by distinguishing their goods and services from those of their competitors.

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Trade marks exist to provide the owner with certain exclusive rights to words, logos, slogans, numbers, colours and audio branding, providing a powerful tool in preventing copycats and counterfeits.

HGF’s large, multidisciplinary team across Europe provides industry-leading advice in securing trade marks for brands across all industries, be it retail, media or food & drink, ensuring goods and services are registered in the optimum categories and jurisdictions to secure the strongest possible protection.

Our attorneys represent clients at the EU, UK, German and Benelux Trade Mark Registries and are also highly experienced in dealing with oppositions, appeals and IP litigation.

In addition, our trade mark attorneys work closely with our IP lawyers in relation to agreements such as for IP licensing, franchising, merchandising, coexistence, selective distribution, and litigation.

See our trade marks specialists

Trade mark industries

Automotive
Creative, media & entertainment
FemTech
Finance
Food & drink
Healthcare
Medical devices
Retail

Latest updates

HGF ranked highly recommended in the WIPR Trade Mark Rankings 2025

HGF has been recognised as a leading firm in the recently published World IP Review (WIPR) Trade Mark Rankings 2025. This achievement highlights our continued commitment to excellence in trade …

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IP Ingredients: Pouring Over the Verdict: What Thatchers v Aldi Means for Food & Drink Brands

Readers of our IP Ingredients blog may recall that we covered something of this case last summer in our post IP Ingredients: Summer case law review. The dispute between Thatchers …

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Thatchers v Aldi: The Fine Line Between Fair Competition and Unfair Advantage

Thatchers Cider Company Limited v Aldi Stores Limited –  Arnold LJ, Phillips LJ and Falk LJ – [2025] EWCA Civ 5 -– 20 January 2025 Summary The Court of Appeal …

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Stripped of Stripes; Browne v Adidas

Back in March, we reported on the US and EU decisions in the ongoing disputes between Adidas and Thom Browne (see Retail Scanner article here). In May, the US appeal …

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Iceland Foods v the Icelandic government goes to the EU General Court

When one thinks of Iceland, you may envision picturesque glaciers and hot springs, or you might think of prawn rings and frozen party food. The ongoing trade mark tussle between …

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Wrapping Up Your IP: Tips for E-Commerce Protection

Many of us would have turned to online shopping for Christmas gifts. Online shopping, whilst hugely convenient, does have its pitfalls. The main issue being not being able to physically …

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Hermès-Inspired Hacks: Using your trade mark ‘outside of the box’

French luxury goods manufacturer, Hermès International, almost lost protection for its signature ‘H’ figurative trade mark earlier this year when the EUIPO’s Cancellation Division issued a decision to revoke the …

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Case Law Round Up

2024 has been a busy year for trade marks, with a number of significant decisions being issued by the UK courts, including Tesco v Lidl, Thatchers v Aldi and the …

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