Cross-border injunctions

Abstract

Whenever a bundle of national protective rights is infringed in different countries, the owner has the burden of suing the imitator in each country separately. This can make enforcement of such rights very difficult and expensive unless the parties agree to be bound by the decision of the courts of one particular jurisdiction. The increasing internationalization of protective rights in the form of the European Patent (where a bundle of national patents results from the European grant) and the EC-Trademark, in addition to the existing Benelux Trademark, Copyright, etc., increases the importance of so-called 'cross-border injunctions' granted under the Brussels Convention (for EC countries) and under a parallel Convention, the Lugano Convention (for EFTA countries). Such injunctions can be granted by a court of a member state and also are effective in other member states. Of course, this makes enforcement of protective rights much easier and cheaper. Nevertheless, although cross-border injunctions are widel...