The Specification Of Goods And Services: Is It Overly Broad?

When a new trademark is filed, it is often tempting to secure a broad scope of protection and cover as many goods and services as possible. This may of course be in line with future goals and business plans of the trademark owner, but often the list of goods and services contains a number of vague or irrelevant items. Such an overly wide specification may ensure a broad scope of protection and exclude competitors, however it may well be contrary to the fair practices.

On November 13th, 2024 the UK Supreme Court issued its judgment where it confirmed that a broad specification of goods and services may constitute bad faith and a trademark may consequently be declared at least partially invalid. Bad faith can therefore be found if the list of goods and services contains a wide range of unspecified items lacking the intention to be used.