IPEC rules in favour of UK IPO in trade mark case

The Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC) has awarded the UK Intellectual Property Office a record amount in damages following fraudulent behaviour of an imitation company.

A company trading under ‘Intellectual Property Agency’ have been conducting a scam in which fake renewal notices have been sent to UK IPO customers stating their trade marks need renewing. They gave the impression that they were working alongside the UK IPO to boost believability. When issuing these notices, the scamming company demanded a fee which was 6 times more than the correct fee outline don the UK Intellectual Property Office’s official website.

IPEC considered this case and ruled that Intellectual Property Agency and its director Mr Harri Mattis Jonasson had committed several counts of trade mark infringement as well damaging the UK IPO’s reputation and goodwill through the common law offence of ‘passing off’.

In conjunction with these findings, the court awarded the UK IPO £500,000 as well as costs which is the highest amount they can issue under their powers as the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court.

This gives a clear message to anyone else who was tempted to commit scams in relation to intellectual property that they will not be taken lightly which should act as a deterrent.

The Minister for Intellectual Property, Baroness Neville-Rolfe praised the outcome of the case saying “I welcome this judgment and the stiff sanctions. Deliberately misleading consumers into thinking they are engaging with an official government agency, is a very serious matter”.

As well as having an impact on the amount of scams conducted, it is hopeful that this case will also encourage victims of scams to step forward and report them to Action Fraud to help combat the issue.

By Ellis Sweetenham