Passing off
Case Note: "Champagnecereales.com"
Société Coopérative Agricole Champagne Céréales v GJ
John Lambert
14 April 1998
This case note originally appeared on the Lancaster Buildings website
This is a case where a defence might have succeeded in England.
The Facts
The plaintiffs applied for an order for the defendant, the manager of a company called Diffusion et Représentation which carried on business as a dealer in farm products, to assign to them the domain names "champagnescereales.com" and "champagne-cereales.com" and pay them 30,000 francs. The defendant had used the first domain name for his company’s web site. The plaintiffs claimed that having marketed and distributed cereals for 70 years they had acquired a national and international reputation in the words "Champagne Cereals" and that they were likely to suffer loss and damage unless they obtained their order.
The Judgment
The Court granted the injunction and awarded the plaintiffs 3,000 francs on the following grounds:
 |
The plaintiffs had been registered in the commercial registry of the Commercial Court of Rheims since the 24 April, 1994. |
|
|
They enjoyed a national and international reputation in the purchasing, storage, processing and sale of cereals. |
|
|
The use of the plaintiffs’ name by some other person in the foodstuff’s industry was likely to cause confusion. |
|
|
The registration of the domain names denied the plaintiffs the use of their own name. |
This case is yet another example of the speed and economy with which the French courts dispose of intellectual property actions.
