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- Posted by TMR TMR on January 18, 2021 / Posted in Trade MarksSupreme Court rejects Jack Daniel’s dog toy infringement caseIn September 2020, whiskey company Jack Daniel’s submitted an appeal to the US Supreme Court, asking a previous verdict ruling that a parody dog toy, designed to look similar to their classic bottle, did not infringe their trade marks. However, this week the court denied the case. The distiller was first taken to court by VIP Products LLC, the makers of the ‘Bad Spaniels Silly Squeakers’ toy in question in 2014, following a number of cease and desist letters sent from Jack [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on January 18, 2021 / Posted in Trade MarksNike and Converse file sweeping trade mark infringement lawsuit against 1200+ websites and social media accountsOn Tuesday the 12 th of January, Nike and owned-company Converse filed a complaint in the United States District Court alleging 589 websites and 676 social media accounts have manufactured and marketed counterfeit, infringing products in an attempt to capitalise on some of the brands popular trade marks. The complaint states that each of the websites in question have or were within the past twelve months, advertising and selling counterfeit products from either brand to customers in the United [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on January 05, 2021 / Posted in Trade MarksIn February 2020, New York-based fashion brand Thom Browne filed three trade mark applications registering intent to use a striped design on footwear.In February 2020, New York-based fashion brand Thom Browne filed three trade mark applications registering intent to use a striped design on footwear. Since, it has met opposition from renowned brands Adidas and Tommy Hilfiger. The design in question, although consisting of ‘five parallel stripes, with the centre stripe in white, the left adjacent stripe in red, the right adjacent stripe in blue, and with the two outermost stripes in white, with the two outermost stripes being narrower [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on January 05, 2021 / Posted in Trade MarksGhost Drinks Ltd, a Cambridge-based company producing hand-crafted premium vodka, found themselves the subject of a lawsuit against Svensk Drama Pop (SDP)At the start of 2020, Ghost Drinks Ltd, a Cambridge-based company producing hand-crafted premium vodka, found themselves the subject of a lawsuit against Svensk Drama Pop (SDP), a company owned by Swedish occult rock band GHOST’s front man Tobias Forge. Ghost Drinks first announced the conflict in May 2020 via a Facebook post, contending that Forge has been aware of the vodka brand since 2016 after approaching them to consider a collaboration. Ghost Drinks claimed they decided not to [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on January 04, 2021 / Posted in Trade MarksBeauty brand glossier granted pink packaging trade markA year and a half after New York-based beauty brand, Glossier, applied to register it’s ‘millennial pink’ product packaging, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on December 15 th granted them registration for ‘the colour pink as applied to the inner surface of portions of boxes that contrast with the colour of the rest of the boxes’, where size and shape of the box constitutes no part of the mark. This aspect of contrast within the registration was [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on January 04, 2021 / Posted in Trade MarksMichael Jordan has failed to win full legal rights to use of his own name in China after filing 80 lawsuits against sports company Qiaodan Sports since 2012.Michael Jordan has failed to win full legal rights to use of his own name in China after filing 80 lawsuits against sports company Qiaodan Sports since 2012. However, Qiaodan, translating to ‘Jordan’, have been ordered to compensate the American basketball star $46,000 in emotional damages and $7,600 to cover legal expenses. This follows a ruling from the China’s Supreme Court in April 2020, overturning two verdicts from lower courts in favour of Qiaodan, ruling the sports [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on December 14, 2020 / Posted in Trade MarksAfter nine years, Lionel Messi has won a trade mark battle allowing him to register his surname, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled.After nine years, Lionel Messi has won a trade mark battle allowing him to register his surname, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled. The footballer originally applied to register the trade mark ‘Messi’ as a sportswear brand in 2011, but was hindered following appeals from Spanish Cycling company, Massi, arguing that the names were too similar and would likely cause confusion. Massi was originally successful in challenging the registration of the trade mark as the [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on December 14, 2020 / Posted in Trade MarksIn June of this year, the band formerly known as Lady Antebellum announced they were changing their name to Lady A, a nickname they claimed to be pre-established and used among fans since their formation in 2006.In June of this year, the band formerly known as Lady Antebellum announced they were changing their name to Lady A, a nickname they claimed to be pre-established and used among fans since their formation in 2006. Their key reasoning being due to the realisation of connotations linking the word ‘antebellum’ to the slave trade, vowing the name change to be their first step in a commitment to practice antiracism. However, what could be seen as a positive step for the band, was met with [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on December 11, 2020 / Posted in Trade MarksIn 2007, Australian fashion retailing company, Factor X, registered the trade mark ‘Black Friday’ for their ‘gothic’ clothing line, granting them ownership under two classes covering sale of clothing and other fashion accessories.In 2007, Australian fashion retailing company, Factor X, registered the trade mark ‘Black Friday’ for their ‘gothic’ clothing line, granting them ownership under two classes covering sale of clothing and other fashion accessories. Since their registration, the term ‘Black Friday’ has become associated with retail sales at the end of November. This association means that in some countries, such as Germany, the term is considered public domain and the trade [...]Read more
- Posted by TMR TMR on December 04, 2020 / Posted in Trade MarksSinger Katheryn Hudson is facing trade mark infringement claims by Australian fashion designer for selling clothing bearing her famous stage name, Katy Perry.Singer Katheryn Hudson is facing trade mark infringement claims by Australian fashion designer for selling clothing bearing her famous stage name, Katy Perry. The designer in question, Katie Jane Taylor, trade marked her maiden name Katie Perry in Australia in 2008 and first sought proceedings against Katy and merchandise company, Killer Queen LLC, in October 2019. The specific items Katie’s barrister, Richard Cobden, claimed were in scope of the breach included products such as [...]Read more