Trade mark decision

BL Number

O/570/01

Decision date

18 December 2001

Hearing Officer

Mr C Bowen

Mark

OLD BIKE MART

Classes

16

Applicant

Mortons of Horncastle Limited

Opponent

Emap Consumer Magazines Ltd

Opposition

Request to amend grounds of Opposition

Result

Request to amend grounds of opposition - Request to add additional ground allowed.

Points Of Interest

• At an earlier interlocutory hearing the opponents had been refused an extension of time to file their evidence in the proceedings (O/370/00). There was a delay in the issue of this decision because the earlier decision was appealed to the High Court. It would now appear that that appeal is not being pursued as the two parties are in negotiation.

Summary

In this case the opponents request to amend the grounds of opposition was by way of adding an additional ground under Section 5(1) of the Act. The opponents opposition was based on their ownership of an earlier registration for the mark BIKE HART in respect of identical goods to those within the specification of the applicants application and they wished to argue that identical marks and identical goods were at issue (Section 5(1)).The request to amend was made more than twelve months after the filing of the opposition.

The applicants opposed the request on the basis that there had been a delay in making the request and also because they submitted that it was clear that the respective marks OLD BIKE MART and BIKE MART were not identical in the context of Section 5(1).

Allowing the amendment the Hearing Officer accepted that the opponents had filed their request as soon as the matter had come to their attention. Additionally he did not believe that they had an unarguable case in the context of Section 5(1).

Full decision O/570/01 30Kb