Legal Question in Intellectual Property in France
Clarify French copywrite law
Bonjour,
I bought a castle that is a historical monument in France, which was owned and operated as a public tourist site before I bought it. Chateau de Belcastel is the name of the chateau, and the village below was named after it in the 11th century. Now, I wish to sell wine with our label on it, and customized souvenirs such as puzzles, postcards, magnets, etc, with �Chateau de Belcastel� on them, using our new and different logo & font. The new logo and font is quite different than the logo that the previous owner used for selling food and souvenirs, etc, but she copy wrote this logo for many uses, including any kind of souvenir that exists! The previous owner proved to be difficult during the sale, and not altogether honest. It is not an amicable relationship, unfortunately. My question is, does she actually own the copy write on the words �Chateau de Belcastel� even though it is a registered historical property, which she no longer owns? Or does she simply own this logo and font for these particular uses? I really appreciate your answer, because if she does, perhaps I should just use and copy write �Chateau de Belcastle.� Sincerely,
5 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Clarify French copywrite law
Dear Sirs,
We are French Trademark Attorneys, and we would be happy to assist you in this matter.
Our contact details are as follows:
Sincerely,
Re: Clarify French copywrite law
I'm not an expert in French law and therefore recommend that you consult with a French intellectual property attorney. Nevertheless, as French (i.e. EU) copyright requires some intellectual effort, I fail to see how the former owner can have a copyright in a name that is in the public domain and is the title of a place. The former owner can copyright a drawing/logo. You may, however, be asking more of a trademark question than a copyright question. I suspect that the former owner could trademark souvenirs with the Castle name, however, no protection would attach to the name. The log design, however, would be protectible. As your design differs from hers you should be okay. The one issue you need to check is whether through secondary meaning the association of her souvenirs with the castle name would give some protection though I doubt it.
Re: Clarify French copywrite law
I am not a French lawyer but it sounds like your question should be asking whether French trademark law (droit de marques) protects names which happen to be names of historical properties (perhaps protected by French law). Simply purchasing the property is unlikely to give you any rights to the name. In the U.S., the first step is to ascertain who, if anyone, owns the rights to the name by doing a search of the trademark register and with respect to which goods/services and then, if the name is available, start using it in commerce (possibly seeking a registration at the same time).
You will need the assistance of a French intellectual property attorney to market anything under the proposed name. Of course, if you ever plan to distribute your products in the U.S., American law would govern and the result may be quite different.
Bon chance.
Re: Clarify French copywrite law
A proper trademark search would need to be done in order to properly ascertain who owns what rights to what trademark AND for which classes of goods those trademarks, if existing, would that trademark actually be protected. Are you sure they filed in US. Seems to be quite a few questions that remain unanswered. This area of law is our specialty, however, we would need some more information before making a complete and proper determination. You are welcome to contact us for a free consultation.
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Re: Clarify French copywrite law
Hello,
I am in receipt of your message and I took good note of it. I will be in a
position to assist you further being an attorney in France and in the USA. I suggest that you provide me with a convenient
time to call and I will get back to you shortly.
I am looking forward to assisting you with the matter at hand.
Very Truly Yours,
Pierre Hourcade
Avocat � la Cour
Attorney at Law
242 bis Boulevard Saint Germain
75007 Paris
Tel. 33 1 46 27 01 00
Fax. 33 1 53 01 34 77
Cell. 33 6 87 94 08 33
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