Wrigley Claydon Solicitors

Category: Intellectual Property

  • Conor McGregor loses three-year legal battle with clothing brand

    MMA fighter Conor McGregor’s application to register the name ‘Conor McGregor’ as a trademark for the sale of clothing across the EU has been rejected by the European Union Intellectual Property Office at Alicante in Spain.

    EUIPO upheld an objection by a Dutch clothing firm, McGregor IP BV against the application. It sells clothing under the ‘McGREGOR’ brand.

    The EU trademark office refused the trademark for clothing due to the likelihood of confusion amongst the public concerning the proposed Conor McGregor brand and the DD McGregor brand used by McGregor IP BV.

    EUIPO also has ordered McGregor to pay the fees and costs incurred by the Dutch company in the action.

     

    Suffering a dispute can have serious implications on you and your livelihood and reputation.  Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Rangers and Sports Direct in Court Battle over Replica Kit

    Judge Lionel Persey has ruled in favour of Rangers Football Club in the latest round of a long-running legal battle between the club and Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley.

    Ashley and Rangers have been embroiled in High Court litigation, centred on a kit deal, for more than a year.

    A company in the Sports Direct Group, SDI Retail Services, had complained about Rangers being in breach of obligations under deals relating to replica kit.

    The judge said he had ruled in favour of Rangers, following the latest hearing earlier this month in which Rangers’ lawyers asked for the injunction to be relaxed. They said the injunction was hindering Rangers’ ability to deal with a sports clothing company, the Elite Group.

    Judge Lionel Persey has now ruled in the club’s favour  but SDI say they are considering an appeal.

    The same judge had ruled in July that Rangers had breached an agreement but said he had reached no conclusion on how much compensation the club should pay.

    Following the most recent ruling, lawyers representing Rangers said SDI should pick up Rangers’ legal bills for the latest round.

    SDI agreed in principle because Rangers had won but argued that Rangers had spent too much on lawyers. Their legal bill totalled around £100,000 and suggested that around half of that would be a reasonable figure.

    The judge split the difference and said SDI should pay £75,000 worth of the club’s legal bills.

     

    Suffering a dispute can have serious implications on you and your livelihood and reputation.  Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Former Liverpool FC Captain, Steven Gerrard wins legal battle against sportswear firms

    Rangers manager Steven Gerrard has won a legal battle with two Italian sportswear firms, Lotto and Errea who tried to block his clothing range called SCG.

    The clothing range is a partnership between Gerrard and former club Liverpool who applied to register SGG Apparel as a trademark in the UK to protect the brand.

    Lotto Sport and Errea both objected to the move, saying the diamond logo used on the Gerrard outfits was too similar to their own and claimed customers could confuse the products.

    The UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), which rules on trademark disputes said SGG Apparel should be allowed the trademark after ruling their logo, was distinctly different from those of the rival firms. Lotto Sport, who previously supplied kits to English side Queen’s Park Rangers, appealed the decision, but that has now been rejected by the IPO.

    Suffering a dispute can have serious implications on you and your livelihood and reputation. Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Diego Maradona wins £59k Dolce and Gabbana court settlement

    Fashion House Dolce & Gabbana has been ordered to pay Diego Maradona £59,000 in damages following a long-running court dispute after a model wore a Napoli shirt with his name and number on it during a fashion show.

    Lawyers for Maradona said the retired footballer had not been contacted ahead of the show, which took place in Naples in 2016, or ask if he consented to his name being used.

    Dolce & Gabbana, which had insisted it was paying tribute to the star who twice won the Italian League with Napoli, was also ordered to pay his legal fees. The total bill is expected to reach around £70,000.

    Suffering a dispute can have serious implications on you and your livelihood and reputation. Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Liverpool FC fail in move to trademark the word ‘Liverpool’

    Liverpool FC’s attempt to trademark the word “Liverpool” has been rejected by the government’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) due to the “geographical significance” of the city.

    The trademark attempt sparked outrage within the club’s own fanbase, as well as the Liverpool mayor.

    Liverpool FC said: they would “continue to aggressively pursue those large-scale operations which seek to illegally exploit our intellectual property and would urge the relevant authorities to take decisive action against such criminal activity wherever it exists.”

    Supporters group Spirit of Shankly described the IPO’s rejection as a “victory for common sense” and “Without fan involvement there would be no challenge to the corporate greed within football”.

    Suffering an intellectual property and technology disputes can have serious implications on your business. Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Rolling Stones pass Verve royalties to Richard Ashcroft

    Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones have ended one of the most acrimonious copyright disputes in British pop by granting Richard Ashcroft all future royalties from his 1997 song Bitter Sweet Symphony, performed by the Verve.

    Bitter Sweet Symphony reached No 2 in the UK and had a distinctive string motif. Those four seconds of strings were sampled from an orchestral recording of the Rolling Stones song The Last Time, but the rights were not fully cleared before the song was released.

    Publishing company ABKCO, owned by Rolling Stones manager Allen Klein, argued that the Verve had used a larger portion of the sample than was agreed, and, following a lawsuit that was settled out of court, forced Ashcroft to relinquish the song’s royalties and create a new song writing credit: Jagger/Richards/Ashcroft.

    But following an appeal to Jagger and Richards from Ashcroft’s management company, the pair “immediately, unhesitatingly and unconditionally agreed” to hand over the royalties.

    Suffering an intellectual property and technology disputes can have serious implications on your business.  Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Airbnb threatens legal action against Scots firm Hairbnb in trademark row

    Airbnb has threatened legal action against a Scots firm named Hairbnb, which offers holiday homes for dogs. It connects licensed dog sitters, boarders and walkers with people who need their pets looked after.

    Allan Ritchie set up the dog boarding business in 2018 and applied for a trademark from the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO).

    Airbnb were given two months to object, starting from February 2018. Airbnb didn’t take any action and Mr Ritchie was given a UK trademark in May 2018.

    However, Mr Ritchie has now been sent a “cease and desist” letter from Airbnb, which has given him until the end of June 2019 to change the trademark.  

    An Airbnb spokesman said: “We want to work in partnership with companies to address these matters and hope to collaborate to resolve concerns amicably.”

    Suffering an intellectual property and technology disputes can have serious implications on your business.  Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • An Australian shoe company has been ordered to pay $450,000 to Deckers, the maker of the UGG boot

    Australian Leather, an Australian shoe company has been ordered to pay $450,000 to Deckers, the maker of the UGG boot.

    A jury for the US District Court found 12 pairs of sheepskin-lined boots sold by Australian Leather infringed US-based Decker’s ‘UGG’ trademarks.

    Deckers first filed an action against Australian Leather in 2016, asking the US court to limit the sales of Australian Leather’s boots to Australia and New Zealand so as to not cause consumer confusion in the US.

    Australian Leather argued “ugg” is a generic term origination in Australia from the 1960s surfing community, but this argument was rejected by the court.

    Additionally, Deckers also alleged Australian Leather had infringed four of its design patents. The verdict on whether Australian Leather infringed the design patents will be decided in a separate non-jury trial.

    In December 2018, Deckers took action against alleged online counterfeiters in China for selling fake UGG boots. It said the counterfeiters ran online stores designed to appear as authorised sellers. Deckers sought an injunction against the companies and $2 million for each use of the UGG trademark.

     

    Suffering an intellectual property and technology disputes can have serious implications on your business. Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Iceland (The Country) Wins Trademark Dispute Against Iceland (The Supermarket)

    The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) has invalidated the UK-based supermarket chain Iceland Foods Ltd EU-wide trademark for the word “Iceland” in 2014. It may not register a trademark on the word “Iceland” within the European Union following the Icelandic authorities who sued to have invalidated on the basis of being far too broad and creating a monopoly that prevented Icelandic companies from registering their products with reference to their country of origin.

     

    The EUIPO noted that “It has been adequately shown that consumers in EU countries know that Iceland is a country in Europe and also that the country has historical and economic ties to EU countries, in addition to geographic proximity.”

    Iceland Foods Ltd. has two months to appeal the ruling.

    Suffering an intellectual property and technology disputes can have serious implications on your business. Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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  • Scotch whisky brand Glenfiddich loses trademark battle with Indian firm

    William Grant & Sons the makers of Glenfiddich has lost a legal battle against an Indian firm, producing a Scotch whisky named Glenfield after it accused it of copying its brand.

    William Grant & Sons tried to block Glenfield’s attempts to trademark the whisky, saying it uses the same green and gold colours and stag on its packaging stating that the similarity between the names could lead people to confuse the two products. It argued that Glenfield could benefit from this confusion and wanted the application to be blocked.

    But the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), which rules on trademark disputes, found in Glenfield’s favour, saying consumers were unlikely to confuse the two whiskies.

    The IPO said: ‘Other than the common occurrence of glen, meaning “a narrow valley, especially in Scotland or Ireland”, the respective marks have no conceptual similarity.’

    It also said that while both labels featured stags, the fact that Glenfiddich shows one animal and Glenfield shows two was ‘unlikely to go unnoticed’.

    While the colours of both labels were similar, the IPO said ‘the differences outweigh the similarities and the applicant’s mark will do no more than bring the opponent’s mark fleetingly to mind. Therefore, there is insufficient similarity for a misrepresentation to occur’.

    Suffering an intellectual property and technology disputes can have serious implications on your business. Our business solicitors will quickly and efficiently put your case together and act on your behalf. Call Vijay Srivastava or Shalish Mehta in our civil and commercial litigation department on 0161 624 6811(Option 6) or email vjs@wrigleyclaydon.com or sm@wrigleyclaydon.com. We can advise you on the appropriate course of action and assist with any legal documents or proceedings that may occur.

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