Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne v. Coors Brewing Company, 2024 FC 169
Justice Pentney - 2024-02-28
Read full decision. Automatically generated summary:
The Applicants, the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne and the Institut National de l’Origine et de la Qualité, appeal a decision of the Registrar of Trademarks that maintained three trademark registrations owned by Coors. The Respondent is the registered owner of three trademarks for Miller High Life beer marketed as “The Champagne of Beers”. ... The Respondent acquired the Marks in question by way of assignment six months prior to the expiry of the three-year period, in the context of a major corporate acquisition. Because it had no evidence of use of the Marks, the Respondent invoked sub-section 45(3) of the Act and sought to demonstrate the reason for the absence of use during the six-month period after acquisition. ... I am not persuaded by the Applicants’ position that the Registrar made an error of law, reviewable on a standard of correctness, in using the acquisition date as the starting point for the period of non-use.
Decision relates to:
- T-1050-21 - COMITÉ INTERPROFESSIONNEL DU VIN DE CHAMPAGNE et Al c. COORS BREWING COMPANY
- A-125-24(2026 FCA 2) - which is an appeal from this decision