7.6.2019

Castrén & Snellman’s Patent Team Recognised as One of Finland’s Top Practices in the 2019 Edition of IAM Patent 1000

Castrén & Snellman has once again been ranked as one of the leading law firms in Finland in the 2019 Edition of Intellectual Asset Management (IAM) Patent 1000 – The World’s Leading Patent Professionals – in the patent litigation and transactions categories.

In the patent litigation category, the publication stated that Head of IP Sakari Salonen ‘really understands the business side of intellectual property and anticipates what his clients need’, and ‘he’s brilliant on the law and very easy to work with’. Life Sciences head Hanna Paloheimo was described as ‘an industry insider with a blend of patent and regulatory expertise’.

According to the publication, ‘experienced litigators Salonen and Paloheimo are currently handling pharmaceutical marketing authorisation matters, patent infringement preliminary injunction proceedings, multifaceted IP enforcement actions, utility model invalidations and employee invention disputes’.

As regards the transactional side, Private Equity & Venture Capital specialist Kimmo Rekola ‘has overseen numerous sales and acquisitions between Finnish and international parties’.

IAM Patent 1000 is a unique guide that identifies the top patent practitioners in the patent prosecution, transactions and litigation fields in key jurisdictions around the globe. Only those individuals identified by market sources for their exceptional skill sets and profound insights into patent matters feature in the IAM Patent 1000.

These rankings highlight the quality and expertise of our intellectual property practice and our commitment to provide unique IP solutions. See all IAM Patent 1000 rankings in Finland on IAM website. 

Latest references

We assisted eQ Community Properties Fund in the sale of two healthcare properties to a fund managed by Northern Horizon. The properties have a total floor area of approximately 3,500 square meters. The two properties are located in Espoo and Lahti. The Espoo asset was completed in 2018 and the Lahti asset was completed in 2023. Both assets are operated by Attendo, the leading care provider in the Nordic region.
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We successfully represented BMW in an exceptionally long dispute over whether the spare rims sold by the defendant and the hub caps included in them infringed BMW’s trademark and design rights. The Market Court found that the sign used by the defendant caused a likelihood of confusion with BMW’s trademarks. The defendant had used the sign on the hub caps and in the marketing of the hub caps and rims, leading the Market Court to find that the defendant had infringed BMW’s trademark rights. The defendant admitted to infringing BMW’s Community design but denied the related injunction claim. However, the Market Court found that there was no particular reason to refrain from issuing an injunction. The Market Court prohibited the defendant from continuing to infringe BMW’s trademarks and Community design and ordered the defendant to alter or destroy the products and marketing materials that infringed BMW’s rights. Furthermore, the Market Court ordered the defendant to pay BMW EUR 70,000 in reasonable compensation and EUR 80,000 in damages for the trademark infringements, as well as EUR 7,000 in reasonable compensation and EUR 8,000 in damages for the design right infringement. The amounts can be considered exceptionally high in Finland. Additionally, the Market Court ordered the defendant to pay a significant portion of BMW’s legal costs with interest on late payment. In its decision of 11 March 2025, the Supreme Court of Finland did not grant the defendant leave to appeal, and also decided that there was no need to seek a preliminary ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union. Thus, the Market Court’s judgements (MAO:494/18 ja 517/2023) are final. In addition to the main dispute, BMW demanded in a separate proceeding that one of the defendant’s trademark registrations be revoked. A total of three separate legal proceedings were conducted in the Market Court regarding the revocation. The defendant’s trademark registration was ultimately revoked.
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Case published 6.5.2025