Delhi High Court Declares 'Burger King' As A Well-Known Trademark

The Delhi High Court has declared “Burger King” as a well known trademark, considering the long period during which the mark and its variations have been used for fast foods, especially burgers.

“…for the declaration of the mark 'BURGER KING' as a well- known mark, considering the long period, during which the 'BURGER KING' mark and its variations have been used for fast foods specially for Burgers, and the factors outlined above, the said mark has achieved the status of a 'well-known mark'. Accordingly, a decree of declaration, is liable to be passed declaring the 'BURGER KING' mark as a 'well-known' mark..,” Justice Prathiba M Singh said.

The court was dealing with three cancellation petitions and a trademark suit filed by Burger King Company LLC against an entity and its owners who were operating “Burger King Family Restaurant.”

The parties agreed to settle their disputes and decided that the Defendants shall not use the trademark 'Burger King' or any other deceptively similar marks, including Burger King Family Restaurant.

It was also agreed that the Defendants shall not challenge the registrations or applications of the said marks in favour of Burger King.

The parties also agreed that the Defendants shall be entitled to use the 'BURGER EMPEROR' mark without any hindrance or objection from Burger King.

“The Defendants shall be entitled to use the 'BURGER EMPEROR' marks for all food items, non-alcoholic drinks, aerated water, snacks, sauces, namkeen and other cognate/allied products,” the court noted.

Accordingly, the cancellation petitions were dismissed as withdrawn in terms of the settlement.

The court said that the parties and anyone acting for or on their behalf shall be bound by the terms of settlement.

“The present order be communicated to the Registrar of Trademarks for the purposes of ensuring that the directions given in the above terms of withdrawal of trademark registrations are duly reflected on the website,” the court said.

Earlier this year, the court refused to cancel the mark “Burger King” and stayed the operation of a registered trademark “Burger King Family Restaurant” observing that it is likely to create confusion in market.

Title: BURGER KING COMPANY LLC v. VIRENDRA KUMAR GUPTA & ANR.

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Del) 1254

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