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United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office Decisions |
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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office Decisions >> SURE FIRE (Trade Mark: Invalidity) [2001] UKIntelP o30401 (13 July 2001) URL: http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKIntelP/2001/o30401.html Cite as: [2001] UKIntelP o30401 |
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For the whole decision click here: o30401
Result
Section 47(1) & 3(1)(b) & (c) & 3(6): - Invalidity failed.
Section 47(2) & 5(4)(a): - Invalidity succeeded.
Points Of Interest
Summary
The objection under Section 3 by the opponents was because they had earlier applied for the mark SUREFIRE for similar goods and had been refused registration on the grounds that the mark was devoid of distinctive character. The Hearing Officer noted that at the relevant date the registered proprietors had no use to support their registration but went on to find that the mark was not so descriptive that it should fall foul of Section 3(1)(b) or (c).
Under Section 3(6) the Hearing Officer noted that the two firms operated in different parts of the UK and that no real evidence had been filed to show that the registered proprietors had acted in bad faith when they applied to register their mark.
With regard to the ground under Section 5(4)(a) - Passing Off - the applicants had filed details of use dating some three years prior to the date of application of the registered mark and the Hearing Officer concluded that they had a goodwill in the marketplace at the relevant date. He went on to find that the Section 5(4) ground had been made out and that the application succeeded on this ground.
