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Trademark Caselaw Report: The rise of CBD oil

topic

In the recent judgement, Christoforatos IKE v. CBD OIL SHOP LTD and others, Claim No. 1422/21, 6/7/2022, the District Court of Larnaca reinstated the importance of protecting registered trademark rights.

In a nutshell

In this case, the Plaintiffs sought to prevent the Defendants, at an interim stage of the proceedings, from using, distributing or selling products or performing any acts in violation of their Cypriot trademark rights in the word “CBDoilshop” and on the basis of the tort of passing off.

The case

The Plaintiffs alleged that the Defendants were selling products of the same nature by making electronic as well as physical use of the same name and same logo with the same depiction as the Plaintiffs’ registered trademark. The Defendants supported that the word was descriptive and that, in any event, they had registered their company’s name in the same wording before the registration of the Plaintiffs’ trademark. The Court made an important distinction and explained that what the Plaintiffs were seeking was not to stop the Defendants from using the word but to stop the Defendants from using the word in a similar way with the same depiction.

The Court’s remarks

Despite the Defendants heavily disputing all allegations from the Plaintiffs, the Court concluded prima facie that there exists a similarity between the wording and logos coupled with the imminent danger that the products stemming from the parties are indeed of the same undertaking.

In order for the status quo ante bellum to be preserved and therefore the rights of the Plaintiffs to be protected, the Court issued the requested interim relief and ordered the Defendants to stop the violation of the Plaintiffs’ Cypriot registered trademark rights by using their wording and logo in a similar way as the Plaintiffs, either physically or electronically.

Takeaways

This case stands as an important reminder of the power a trademark registration will confer on any business. You can find out about the importance of trademark registrations and the value they impose on your business here.

The content of this article is valid as at the date of its first publication. It is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter and does not constitute legal advice. We recommend that you seek professional advice on your specific matter before acting on any information provided. For further information or advice, please contact Agis Charalambous, Head of Intellectual Property Department, Nicosia at +357-22447777 or by email at agis.charalambous@kyprianou.com