The Sustainability of EU Trade mark law

The EU Sustainable Development Goals have long been a resemblance of the urgent call for climate action and sustainable development. With trade marks being a valuable source of information for consumers, capable of communicating a green reputation, there is a significant risk of consumer deception through greenwashing. Additionally, trade mark law is also used as a means of fostering sustainable development through a guarantee of quality that a trade mark represents. Consequently, trade mark law is concerned with sustainability. This begs the question to what degree EU trade mark law is tailored to achieve the EU Sustainable Development Goals. To answer this question, a thorough assessment is made of the current legal framework of EU trade mark law. The assessment comprises of a look into the influence on sustainable development, together with the discerning of shortcomings in the way the respective aspects of EU trade mark law can add to the achievability of the EU Sustainable Development Goals. It is concluded that EU trade mark law is to a great extent tailored to achieve the EU Sustainable Development Goals, but that with the help of the suggested remedies, EU trade mark law can become a true catalyst of sustainable development.