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  • © 2020

The Average Consumer in Confusion-based Disputes in European Trademark Law and Similar Fictions

  • Provides in depth coherent analysis of this essential factor in European Trademark Law - the average consumer as part of likelihood of confusion
  • Includes multi-level legal analyses - International, EU and National (UK, Sweden, Denmark and Norway)
  • Analyses theoretical aspects (e.g. in light of legal fiction theory) and legal aspects (e.g. in light of adjacent areas of law – the UCPD, EU design law and European patent law)

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Table of contents (12 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xxi
  2. The Average Consumer: A Consumer Fiction in European Trademark Law

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1
    2. Background

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 3-37
    3. Methodology

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 39-64
    4. Legal Sources

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 65-92
    5. The Dynamics of the European Trademark Law

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 93-123
  3. Horizontal Analysis: One Among Other Fictions and the UCPD Consumer Models

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 125-125
    2. The Average Consumer as a Legal Fiction and Beyond

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 127-147
    3. The Average Consumer and Its More or Less Distant Cousins

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 149-199
    4. The UCPD and Trademark Average Consumers: Two of a Kind?

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 201-221
  4. Vertical Analysis: The Judicial Background and European Trademark Law

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 223-223
    2. The Early Beginnings of the Average Consumer Pre Sabel

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 225-252
    3. Likelihood of Confusion: Legislative Harmonisation?

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 253-279
    4. The Average Consumer in a “Global” Perspective

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 281-313
    5. Contextualisation of the Average Consumer

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 315-366
  5. Wrapping Up

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 367-367
    2. Putting the Average Consumer into Perspective

      • Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen
      Pages 369-387
  6. Back Matter

    Pages 389-435

About this book

This book contends that, with regard to the likelihood of confusion standard, European trademark law applies the average consumer incoherently and inconsistently. To test this proposal, it presents an analysis of the horizontal and vertical level of harmonization of the average consumer. The horizontal part focuses on similar fictions in areas of law adjacent to European trademark law (and in economics), and the average consumer in unfair competition law. The vertical part focuses on European trademark law, represented mainly by EU trademark law, and the trademark laws of the UK, Sweden, Denmark and Norway. The book provides readers with a better understanding of key aspects of European trademark law (the average consumer applied as part of the likelihood of confusion standard) and combines relevant law and practices with theoretical content and other related areas of law (and economics). Accordingly, it is an asset for policymakers and practitioners, as well as general readers with an interest in intellectual property law and theory.


Authors and Affiliations

  • IPR & Compliance, Group Legal, Grundfos Holding A/S, Bjerringbro, Denmark

    Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen

About the author

Rasmus Dalgaard Laustsen, Legal Counsel in IPR & Compliance, Grundfos Holding A/S and former PhD Scholar at Aarhus University, Department of Law, Aarhus, Denmark

Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access