Press Release: Judgment in Case C-44/17. Scotch Whisky Association v Michael Klotz

In order to decide whether there is an ‘evocation’ prohibited by EU law, the national court must determine whether a consumer thinks directly of the protected geographical indication ‘Scotch Whisky’ when he sees a comparable product bearing the designation ‘Glen’.

It is not sufficient that the designation is liable to evoke, in the consumer concerned, some kind of association of ideas with the protected indication or the relevant geographical area.