Wistbray Limited v. Unilever Plc

Wistbray Limited

Case details

Plaintiff: Wistbray Limited

Defendant: Unilever Plc

Case no.: O/348/02

Jurisdiction: United Kingdom

Industry: Retail

Decision date: 12 Jul, 2001

Decision

The opponents opposition was based on their view that as "chai", "char" and "cha" are well known terms to describe tea, the mark in suit will be seen as another variant. In particular the opponents filed evidence to establish that "chai" means tea in many languages eg Indian, Mandarin, Chinese etc and has entered the English language. They say that the mark in suit is too close to "chai" both visually and phonetically and could easily be confused by the public and people in the tea industry.

Comparison of Trademarks

CHAE