Judgment_paragraph 38 · Lego Juris A/S v Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) (OHIM) (C-48/09 P)

38According to settled case-law, trade mark law constitutes an essential element in the system of competition in the European Union. In that system, each undertaking must, in order to attract and retain customers by the quality of its goods or services, be able to have registered as trade marks signs enabling the consumer, without any possibility of confusion, to distinguish those goods or services from others which have another origin (see, to that effect, Case C-517/99 Merz & Krell [2001] ECR I-6959, paragraphs 21 and 22; Case C-206/01 Arsenal Football Club [2002] ECR I-10273, paragraphs 47 and 48; and Case C-412/05 P Alcon v OHIM [2007] ECR I-3569, paragraphs 53 and 54).