Some Peculiarities of the Civil Law Regulation of Com-mercial Names in Particular EU Member States

Abstract

The issue of intellectual property rights protection is an indicator of the market economy level of development and country’s activity in foreign trade. The peculiarities of civil law regulation of commercial names in particular EU member states have been considered. It has been established that in Germany the exclusive right to a commercial name arises from the use of these means of individualization in commercial circulation in contrast to domestic legislation where primary registration has a legal meaning. It has been analyzed that in Germany the protection of registered trademarks is harmonized in accordance with EU law while protection of unregistered trademarks and commercial names is left to the discretion of the national legislative authorities. In general protection of commercial names results from their simple use. At the same time, in Austria the protection of commercial names starts with a record in a com-mercial register. It has been revealed that in Sweden the exclusive right to a commercial name may arise either because of the registration of a designation in the trade register or as a result of gaining popularity from this usage. In Fin-land the exclusive right to a company name or a subsidiary company name can be obtained by registration or through its actual use.