The Qualification of a Trademark as a Trademark with Reputation: Comments in the Light of the Polish Administrative Courts’ Case Law

On 16 June 2021, as a result of a cassation appeal, the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) ruled that the reputation of a trademark is not determined by its qualitative aspects. This position should not come as a surprise, two decades after the judgment in the General Motors Corporation v. Yplon SA (Chevy) case. However, the justification of the SAC ruling indicates that in proceedings before the Patent Office of the Republic of Poland and Polish administrative courts, one cannot predict the exact interpretation these authorities will make. This article discusses the jurisprudence of the administrative courts in the field of the concept of trademarks with a reputation; it focuses on the quantitative and qualitative approach and refers to the scope of the binding of Polish courts by the interpretation of the law by the EU courts.