Bodum USA Inc. v. Meyer Housewares Canada Inc., 2013 FCA 240
Bodum previously sued Meyer for infringement, passing off and depreciation of goodwill of their mark FRENCH PRESS. (Decision here, summarized here.) Bodum lost that decision and appealed, but the Court dismissed from the bench. The case turned on the issue of distinctiveness, but the panel failed to find any error in law or fact warranting intervention. FRENCH PRESS was considered to be a common name for the non-electric coffee making device at issue, and its use was a bona fide commercial use as a generic term.
