Hello. I am Attorney Lee Young-kyung of Cheongchul Law Firm.

Today, I would like to introduce an important Supreme Court ruling regarding the right to use well-known marks and the right to claim prohibitions against unfair competition. The ruling 2023da216302, which was announced on July 11, 2024, addressed whether the law applicable to the permission of use by those who jointly own a well-known mark that is not registered is the Civil Act or the Trademark Act.

[Question]

According to Article 4, Paragraph 1 of the Act on the Prevention of Unfair Competition, does the person who can claim the prohibition or prevention of such acts include not only the holders of such marks but also licensees, etc., who have unique and legitimate interests regarding the use of those marks?

[Answer]

[1. Summary of the Case]

This case is known in the media as the Dongseo Furniture case, which concerns who the legitimate user of the 'Dongseo Furniture Trademark (Mark)' is, and who can file a prohibition claim under the Act on the Prevention of Unfair Competition. The development of the case can be summarized in the following table:

The Act on the Prevention of Unfair Competition and Protection of Trade Secrets (hereinafter 'Unfair Competition Prevention Act') Article 2, Item 1, Sub-item (a) defines