Intellectual Property Office succeeds in passing off claim
Legal action filed at the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court against 'Patent and Trade Mark Office' and 'Patent and Trade Mark Organisation'.
Two of the most blatant offenders – ‘Patent and Trademark Office’ and ‘Patent and Trade Mark Organisation’ – and the persons behind these organisations, Mr Aleksandrs Radcuks and Mr Igors Villers, have admitted and settled our claims and agreed to be bound by an Order of the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court prohibiting them from further acts of passing off.
This means that if these people pass themselves off again as the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), they will be in contempt of court and liable to imprisonment.
Part of the settlement is a substantial payment to the IPO which will cover some of our legal costs.
Further proceedings are pending against another organisation that is engaged in similar practices, so watch this space.
Background
On Monday 19 May 2014, we filed a claim for passing off at the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court against the persons behind the companies trading as Patent and Trade Mark Office and Patent and Trade Mark Organisation.
These organisations have been issuing official looking ‘renewal’ notices to holders of UK registered patents and trade marks offering to renew the rights for fees greatly in excess of the official renewal fees. We know that some of our customers have been misled into making excessive payments to these organisations because they thought they were paying the IPO for renewing intellectual property rights.
We therefore felt it was necessary to take appropriate action given the evidence that our customers are being misled or confused and that damage is being caused to the office’s good name.