The Delhi High Court has cancelled the Indian registration of the trademark 'BLUE-JAY', holding it was adopted in bad faith by a local partnership firm. The ruling came in a suit filed by Major League Baseball’s IP-holding company for the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Court found that the Indian firm’s use of a similar name 22 years after the Blue Jays registered their mark globally was dishonest.The Court rejected the respondents’ claim that they named their brand after a bird and noted conflicting reasons to justify the same.
MLB has established prior use in India since 1996, through its website and global presence. The court ordered the removal of the Indian registration from the trademark registry.
[Major League Baseball Properties Inc v. Manish Vijay & Ors.]
