Ruling tastes good for Smirnoff as vodka name gets protected status – Diageo...
Diageo – the owner of the market leading brand, Smirnoff – has obtained an important judgment protecting the vodka name from being passed off as a cheaper imitation called vodkat. Smirnoff has been...
View ArticleFailure to act quickly enough proved fatal to injunction application to stop...
Since 2004, A had been operating the blinkx.com web site, which was an Internet service providing access to film, television and video content. In 2008, B started up its own site at blinkbox.com, which...
View ArticleSmall Essex café owner tells Harrods that they’ll continue to call themselves...
The owner of a small café in Essex has vowed to carry on calling themselves Hollands, despite a heavyweight challenge by Harrods. Nigel Holland said he was ‘amazed’ when Harrods’ lawyers wrote to him...
View ArticleNumatic fails to see funny side of imitation as Henry cleans up in vacuum...
In what has proved to be a very dirty dispute, Numatic has obtained a ruling from the High Court that Qualtex’s proposed new vacuum cleaner amounted to passing off. The prototype for the product looked...
View ArticleIt’s drinks all round as Diageo celebrates confirmation that VODKA has...
Diageo – the owner of the market leading brand, Smirnoff – has obtained an important judgment protecting the vodka name from being passed off as a cheaper imitation called vodkat. Smirnoff has been...
View ArticleSophisticated fake sites set up in seconds
It takes just seconds to set up sophisticated fake web sites. Those are the claims made by First Cyber Security, the Internet security business. The problem is growing. The number of counterfeit goods...
View ArticleHigh Court awards injunction to stop ex-agent using domain names similar to...
The High Court has awarded an injunction to stop the agent of its previous client from using three domain names that were confusingly similar to its ex-client’s domain names. Lifestyle Management was a...
View ArticleYell screeches to home win in trade mark infringement and passing off case...
Yell owns a UK registered trade mark for “Yellow Pages” and a walking fingers logo. Through two transport business directory websites that Giboin and his companies operated from another country, they...
View ArticlePassing off action success for tree surgery – Redwood Tree Services Ltd v...
The claimant and defendant were trading within a few miles of each other under similar business names. The two businesses had managed to co-exist for some time, until the defendant started doing...
View ArticleUnited copycat hopes suffer crash landing – United Airlines Inc v United...
United Airlines, the famous US airline, has won a comprehensive victory and obtained summary judgment in the High Court against a Bangladeshi airline that went under the name United Airways. The High...
View ArticleBottles bank Shütz High Court trade mark victory – Shütz v Delta Containers,...
Shütz trade marked caged bulk containers, which were used to transport and store liquids in bottles inside the containers. Both the container and the bottles carried the Shütz name and had been...
View ArticleUS website loses battle for passing off as reputation amongst UK users not...
The operator of a US dating website, Plentyoffish, opposed an application by Plenty More, a UK dating website, to register a figurative trade mark using the words “plenty more fish”. Plentyoffish...
View ArticleSpecsavers seeing better now after appeals against Asda upheld – Specsavers...
In 2010, the High Court was asked to consider whether a marketing campaign and rebranding by Asda in relation to its optician service infringed trade marks held by Specsavers. Many of Specsavers’...
View ArticleSweet Squared digs its nails in and gets under Lumos’ skin in passing off...
Lumos Skincare (Lumos) operated a skincare products distribution business under the trade mark “Lumos”. Sweet Squared and the other businesses against which Lumos issued proceedings (SS) distributed...
View ArticleUse of name was not “fine” in estate agent’s name
Fine & Country v Okotoks, High Court F&C had registered the “Fine & Country” name and logo as registered UK and European Community trade marks so it could license them to independent estate...
View ArticleJudge permitted to infer damage and loss of trade despite lack of evidence
Woolley v Ultimate Products, Court of Appeal The claimants had developed a successful business and goodwill in marketing watches under the HENLEY brand and owned a European Community Trade Mark for...
View ArticleHigh Court rules distinctive “RUUKKI” brand can stop trade mark on passing...
Rautaruukki OYJ v Ruukki Group OYJ and others, High Court Rautaruukki (R) sold metal products, and, in 2004, started using “RUUKKI” as its marketing name. R applied for and obtained a trade mark for...
View ArticleCTM is “NOW” invalid, says High Court
Starbucks (HK) Ltd and others v British Sky Broadcasting Group plc and others, High Court Starbucks (a Hong Kong-based media group and not the coffee shop chain) issued proceedings against Sky alleging...
View ArticleOnline Wardrobe shop sufficiently different to bespoke bricks and mortar shop...
Meemi Ltd v Wardrobe (Beautiful Clothes) Ltd, High Court W owned a trade mark registration for WARDROBE and ran a shop with haute couture clothing. M sold clothing online and had registered a trade...
View ArticleGreek [albeit made in the US] Yoghurt Sir?
Fage UK Limited v Chobani UK Limited, High Court Just when you thought you had heard enough about not so Greek yoghurt, the case thickens… Chobani has applied to the High Court for permission to...
View ArticleHonest concurrent use defence for passing off rejected where lack of steps...
WS Foster & Sons v Brooks Brothers, Patents County Court From 1965, Foster had used a fox and boot device on its shoes and boots. Brooks was a UK subsidiary of a well-known US menswear group and...
View ArticleGreek Yoghurt battle goes sour
Fage UK Ltd v Chobani UK Ltd, High Court The High Court has found that a passing off claim did not need to show that the public as a whole believed that the trading name “Greek Yoghurt” was suggestive...
View ArticlePerpetual exclusive trade mark licence after corporate deal infringed when...
Doosan Power Systems v Babcock International, High Court This case arose out of a corporate deal in 1995. Babcock had sold off its energy division, Doosan, and granted Doosan a perpetual exclusive...
View ArticleAllen is no mug as he wins the day over Mr Spoon merchandise infringements
Allen v Redshaw, Patents County Court Ian Allen created a puppet show called Mr Spoon on Button Moon, as well as the puppets on the show. Thames Television commissioned seven series involving the...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal digs nails into “Lumos” passing off defendant as skincare and...
Lumos Skincare v Sweet Squared, Court of Appeal This was a case of beauty products. But the result will not appear pretty to the defendant. Lumos Skincare sold four anti-ageing skincare products under...
View ArticleFine judgment from Court of Appeal in passing off and trade mark infringement...
Okotoks Ltd v Fine & Country Ltd, Court of Appeal The Court of Appeal has found that whilst the original judge may have made an error in his conclusions regarding registration of the trade mark...
View ArticleHigh Court refuses application for survey evidence in passing off claim
ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd v Zeebox Ltd, High Court The High Court has refused an application to include survey evidence in a claim for passing off. ZEE is an Indian-based television company...
View ArticleFarmers fishing in wrong place over descriptive trade mark words
Evegate Publishing v Newsquest Media, High Court Evegate or its predecessor had been publishing and supplying a farming magazine called South East Farmer to 15,000 people in the South East of England...
View ArticleRihanna victory shines bright like a diamond as singer wins passing off claim
Robyn Rihanna Fenty v Arcadia Group Brands Ltd (t/a Topshop), High Court The High Court has concluded that Topshop’s sale of T-shirts bearing a photograph of Rihanna, a well-known popstar, without her...
View ArticleIt’s a jungle out there –trade mark opposition by former band mate upheld
Eric Victor Burdon v John Steel, Appointed Person of the Appeal Tribunal Trade Marks, Intellectual Property Office An opposition by the former vocalist of a disbanded musical group to an application by...
View ArticleLocal café tiff not storm in teacup as trade mark for similar name revoked...
Bocacina v Boca Cafes, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court Bocacina ran a bar, restaurant and gallery in Bristol since 2005 under the name “Bocabar”. It was sometimes known just as “Boca” and had a...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal upholds ruling that “NOW” was invalid as a trade mark
Starbucks (UK) Ltd v British Sky Broadcasting, Court of Appeal Starbucks (a Hong Kong-based media group and not the coffee shop chain) issued proceedings against Sky alleging that Sky’s use of the...
View ArticleIt all goes sour in Greek yoghurt Court of Appeal case
Fage v Chobani, Court of Appeal Fage was a group of Greek yoghurt producers who had sold Greek yoghurt in the UK since the 1980s. They objected to US businesses called Chobani who sold yoghurt in the...
View ArticleEx-member of trade group not liable for innocent use of group’s logo in...
National Guild of Removers & Storers v Milner, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court Milner was a member of a trade group. When he ceased membership, he placed an advert in a local directory. The...
View ArticleMoroccanoil fails to prove Aldi passing off despite similar get-up
Moroccanoil Israel Ltd v Aldi Stores Ltdt, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court Moroccanoil Israel Ltd, the company famous for selling hair-oil-products endorsed by the likes of Marion Cotillard and...
View ArticleDance equipment supplier in a spin over instrument of fraud in domain name...
Vertical Leisure v Poleplus, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court Vertical Leisure, a supplier of dance equipment, owned and used various trade marks including “X-Pole” and developed a new accessory...
View ArticleLinfoots successfully defends passing off and breach of contract claims by Orvec
Orvec International Ltd v Linfoots Ltd – Intellectual Property Enterprise Court The Intellectual Property Enterprise Court has dismissed Orvec’s claims that Linfoots passed off its products. The facts...
View ArticleWebsite needs to be repaired as BMW wins passing off case against Mini car...
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG v Shaun Coley (trading as BMW Mini Gearbox Centre), Intellectual Property Enterprise Court The IPEC has made declarations that a garage and car parts business trading as...
View ArticleAnglian closes window on similar trader
Anglian Windows Ltd v Anglian Roofline Ltd, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court Anglian Windows, the home improvement business with a £200m turnover, has managed to obtain an interim injunction to...
View ArticleCourt of Appeal upholds Rihanna’s right to sue Topshop for passing off in...
Robyn Rihanna Fenty v Arcadia Group Brands Ltd, Court of Appeal Rihanna has succeeded in defeating Arcadia’s appeal to the Court of Appeal over a High Court ruling that Arcadia’s Topshop stores had...
View ArticleMere reputation from another country not enough to establish goodwill and...
Starbucks (HK) Ltd v British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc, Supreme Court P provided an Internet protocol television service called NOW TV in Hong Kong. UK people could not receive NOW TV, but people in...
View ArticleMusic hits wrong note over battle of the ukulele trade marks
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain v Clausen, High Court Something as nice as playing music went wrong here, as two competing music groups fell out and ended up in court. The Ukulele Orchestra of...
View ArticleRice not nice for trade mark based on extended passing off for BASMATI
Tilda Riceland Private Ltd v OHIM, EU General Court In yet another trade mark case concerning food this month, the European Union General Court has ruled against a registered European Community Trade...
View ArticleSquabbling adult education charities sent to naughty corner by judge over...
NOCN v Open College Network Credit4Learning, Intellectual Property Enterprise Court NOCN held registered trade marks for OCN and a swoosh logo. It claimed that the defendant had infringed its marks and...
View ArticleHigh Court upholds jurisdiction of domain name dispute resolution service and...
RBS v Yoyo.email, High Court The Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy’s informal procedure to determine domain name ownership disputes should be respected, according to a ruling in the High Court. The...
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