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ARTICLE · 31 JANUARY 2025

SkyKick v Sky: Wide Claims, Narrow Rules

Dehns
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In its long-awaited judgment in SkyKick v Sky, the Supreme Court reversed significant aspects of the Court of Appeal's decision on bad faith. This landmark ruling reshapes the interpretation of bad faith in UK trade mark law, with wide-ranging implications for the filing, enforcement, and scope of trade marks.

United KingdomIntellectual Property
Daniel Wheatley
Daniel Wheatley
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SkyKick UK Ltd and another v Sky Ltd and others [2024] UKSC 36

In its long-awaited judgment in SkyKick v Sky, the Supreme Court reversed significant aspects of the Court of Appeal's decision on bad faith. This landmark ruling reshapes the interpretation of bad faith in UK trade mark law, with wide-ranging implications for the filing, enforcement, and scope of trade marks. Businesses and legal advisers must now carefully evaluate existing and prospective broad specifications, as this judgment leaves room for such filings to be challenged on the grounds of bad faith.

Background

The dispute between Sky and SkyKick began in 2016 when Sky accused SkyKick of infringing its SKY-formative trade mark registrations through the use of the signs "skykick," "SkyKick," and associated figurative marks in respect of email migration and cloud storage services. Sky also alleged passing off.

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