In a decision issued by the Australian Trade Marks Office,
Stella McCartney Limited ("SML") has successfully opposed
the acceptance of the mark depicted below:
SML owns Australian trade mark registrations for STELLA, which
cover cosmetic and personal care products in Class 3. Mr Wong Kwai
Hua ("Mr Wong") sought registration for the mark depicted
above ("ST ELLA Stylised") in respect of a wide range of
goods in Classes 3 and 18, and a wide range of services in Class
44. The key issue was whether the marks STELLA and ST ELLA Stylised
are deceptively similar.
On that issue, the Hearing Officer found that the stylisation of
the ST ELLA trade mark gives "the initial impression that
the abbreviation "St" and the word "Ella" are
(and form) a unity. The fact that the initial letters of the trade
mark are the abbreviation "St" are, on a first
impression, not at all obvious". Consequently, he found
it a strong argument that a person aware of STELLA product, and
looking
