Landmark win in Iranian trade mark battle

Landmark win for Iranian citizen seeking to file a trade mark in Iran to cover goods and services concerning alcoholic beverages. Under the Iranian Law on Registration of Patents, Industrial Designs and Trade Marks of 2007, a trade mark is not eligible for registration if legal standards, public order or moral values are contradicted. In light of that, the goods and services which cover the production, purchase, sale and consumption of any kind of alcoholic beverages have been removed from Iran’s trade mark classification (namely, Class 33) so as not to breach Iran’s laws on the same. However, in 2018 an Iranian citizen made a trade mark application in Iran to cover production and distribution of alcoholic drinks. The mark covered a mark already registered in Western countries. The application was accepted by the Office in Iran after having received no objection. Following the registration of the mark, a Scotch company issued cancellation proceedings to have the mark nullified and cancelled on the basis the mark was non-compliant with the Shariah, public order and moral values. Further, the company argued the mark to be exactly the same as marks registered in other jurisdictions therefore the Iranian mark would mislead Iranian consumers. The court sided with the Scotch based company and invalidated the mark. However, the holder of the mark appealed the decision and overturned the original decision. If you have any questions on the above, please do not hesitate to contact the team at McDaniels Law on 0191 281 4000 or legal@mcdanielslaw.com. in: Case Law, Civil Procedure, EU/International, Legal News, News, Trade Marks

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