The Trademark Office opposed the application of the trademark KALE in classes 29, 30 and 31, on the grounds it was confusingly similar to the KALI trademark, registered in classes 18, 29, 30 and 31.
The applicant for the registration of the KALE trademark responded by bringing a lawsuit against the Trademark Office and the owner of the KALI mark for cancellation of the mark due to non-use.
The court found in favour of the plaintiff, ordering the partial cancellation of the KALI mark in classes 29, 30 and 31 and registration of the KALE mark in the same classes. Its ruling was based on the fact that the defendant failed to provide any evidence that the mark had been used commercially within three years of registration in any classes other than class 18.
The ruling accords with Article 13 of the Patent and Trademark Regulations, which states that where the owner of a registered mark fails to use that mark commercially within three years of its registration either in Iran or outside Iran, any interested person can apply to the Tehran Court of First Instance for its cancellation.
For further information on this topic please contact Mohammad Badamchi at HAMI Legal Services Inc by telephone (+98 21 204 36 84) or by fax (+98 21 204 36 86) or by email ([email protected]).