Case Overview

Hengjie holds the exclusive rights to their trademarks "" and "", which has been recognized as well-known trademarks. The defendant, Changge City Henger Ceramics Co., Ltd., used a similar trademark in similar goods items on products such as flush toilets and urinals as well as the packages and decoration. In December 2018, the Foshan Intermediate People's Court issued a second-instance judgment [(2018) Yue 06 Min Zhong No. 9608], ruling that the defendant had committed trademark infringement and unfair competition.

Despite this ruling, the defendant later registered the infringing trademark with the CNIPA and continued to engage in acts that violated Hengjie Company's exclusive trademark rights, generating significant sales revenue. As the legal counsel, Chispo represented Hengjie filed a lawsuit with the Beijing Intellectual Property Court. In the first-instance ruling, the court ordered the defendant to compensate Hengjie Company for economic losses and reasonable expenses totaling 1.6 million yuan.

Legal Commentary

The defendant had previously been found guilty of infringement in a prior judgment but believed that their trademark was not similar to the plaintiff’s and should not be considered infringing. Additionally, they claimed to have their own registered trademark. In response, the plaintiff, under Chispo’s legal counsel’s advice, initiated an invalidation proceeding against the defendant's trademark. To prevent further infringement in a timely manner, the plaintiff also filed a trademark infringement lawsuit before the invalidation decision was issued.

To strengthen the case, the CHIEPO legal team meticulously reviewed previous case evidence and discovered that after 2018, the defendant had plagiarized the plaintiff’s advertising slogans. Combined with other instances of malicious infringement, this evidence led the court to confirm the trademark infringement. Given the defendant’s repeated violations, the court applied punitive damages, holding them accountable for compensation.

This case highlights the importance of proactive legal strategies in protecting intellectual property rights. By promptly challenging the infringing trademark and leveraging strong evidence, the plaintiff secured a favorable judgment, setting a precedent for combating repeat infringers in the trademark domain.

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