「우리은행」 사건의 법률적 고찰

Legal Aspects on Invalidation of Registered Service Mark of "우리은행(OUR BANK)"

"우리은행" is a registered mark as a service mark for services of bank and various financing services. The mark means "OUR BANK". As "OUR BANK" is descriptive, the term "우리은행" is also descriptive. Of course, the term should not have been registered as a service mark. However, the term was registered because the term is with a device which should be distinctive. In Korea, we do not have the disclaimer system. Although the term is descriptive, it is not clear whether the trademark owner can claim for the term or not. This invalidation action was brought by the petitioner, other banks except the OUR BANK, because the petitioner concerns about the term only, but never the device. since we do not adopt the disclaimer system, we cannot solve this petition. Also, the use of the registered mark has nothing to do with the registration. In other words, even though the registered mark is invalidated through the invalidation action, the term can be used as a bank name. What will be a next action for the petitioner to take?