Book Review: Trade Marks Law by Glen Gibbons

Having been sent for review the second edition of "Trade Marks Law", by Glen Gibbons (ISBN: 978-1-905536-80-1), this being a book on trade mark law written from an Irish viewpoint, this Kat was delighted to find a willing reviewer in his colleague Shane Smyth, himself a renowned authority on the subject. Over to Shane:

A TREATISE OF TWO CITIES 

Not to be outdone by Charles Dickens, Glen Gibbons in his second edition of Trade Marks Law (published by Clarus Press) has with considerable insight, drawn upon his experience at the Irish Bar to illustrate the interaction between our Masters (primarily the Courts in Luxembourg) and how the crumbs which fall from the Master’s table are devoured by both the Irish Courts in Dublin and the Irish Patents Office (IPO). Since the IPO is based in Kilkenny, strictly speaking we have two cities but even Frankie Goes To Hollywood and Jonathan Swift only had two tribes at war.

The author in the preface to his first edition correctly opines that the law of Trade Marks is not a discrete corpus of law. With this in mind, the author addresses not just the façade of the bodily appearance but also its internal machinations. He does so by way of scratching below the surface with incision. Not too many Irish Trade Mark cases hit the Irish Courts and when they do, the in-depth analysis which the author provides to the leading cases in areas such as passing off (McCambridge v Joseph Brennan Bakeries), genuine use (Compagnie Gervais Danone v Glanbia Foods Society Ltd) and comparative advertising (Aldi Stores (Ireland) Ltd. v Dunnes Stores) is for the practitioner and students alike transcending differing needs. Indeed, I also have a strong suspicion that the Controller before the Irish Patents Office also looks to this treatise for inspiration and the judiciary would be well served in doing likewise.

When I have partaken in the preparation for a Hearing before the Controller, I found the first edition to be integral to my armoury. Now that I have the second edition at my disposal, I hope that one day our paths will cross at a Hearing so that by crossing swords, I will be able to disarm the author by quoting from his own treatise. Stranger things have happened.