Lidl Great Britain Limited & Anor v Tesco Stores Limited & Anor

Lidl Great Britain Limited & Anor v Tesco Stores Limited & Anor

Tesco's Clubcard Prices signs were found to be similar to Lidl's Mark with Text and created a link in the mind of the average consumer, taking unfair advantage of Lidl's reputation for value and causing detriment to the distinctive character of the mark. There was evidence of both origin and price match confusion. Lidl's passing off claim succeeded as a substantial number of consumers were deceived into believing Tesco's prices were equivalent to Lidl's. Copyright subsisted in the Mark with Text, and Tesco's design process, involving Wolff Olins, resulted in copying a substantial part of Lidl's logo. However, Lidl failed to rebut the presumption of bad faith regarding the original and...

Parties
Claimant/defendant: Lidl Great Britain Limited; Claimant/defendant: Lidl Stiftung & Co KG; Defendant/claimant: Tesco Stores Limited; Defendant/claimant: Tesco PLC
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
19 April 2023
Procedural Posture
Consolidated Civil Claims and Counterclaims / Judgment After Full Trial
Outcome
Judgment for Lidl on trade mark infringement (Mark with Text), passing off, and copyright infringement; judgment for Tesco on bad faith invalidity of the Wordless Mark and certain related registrations.
Legal Topics
Trade Mark Infringement, Passing Off, Copyright Infringement, Bad Faith Registration, Revocation for Non Use
Intellectual Property Commercial Law Trade Mark Infringement Passing Off Copyright Infringement Bad Faith Registration Revocation for Non Use

Case Brief

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Parties

Lidl Great Britain Limited

Claimant/defendant

Lidl Stiftung & Co KG

Claimant/defendant

Tesco Stores Limited

Defendant/claimant

Tesco PLC

Defendant/claimant

Procedural Posture

Consolidated Civil Claims and Counterclaims / Judgment After Full Trial

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether Tesco's use of Clubcard Prices signs infringed Lidl's registered trade marks under section 10(3) of the Trade Marks Act 1994
  2. 2 Whether Tesco's use amounted to passing off
  3. 3 Whether Tesco infringed Lidl's copyright in its logo

Ratio Decidendi

Tesco's Clubcard Prices signs were found to be similar to Lidl's Mark with Text and created a link in the mind of the average consumer, taking unfair advantage of Lidl's reputation for value and causing detriment to the distinctive character of the mark. There was evidence of both origin and price match confusion. Lidl's passing off claim succeeded as a substantial number of consumers were deceived into believing Tesco's prices were equivalent to Lidl's. Copyright subsisted in the Mark with Text, and Tesco's design process, involving Wolff Olins, resulted in copying a substantial part of Lidl's logo. However, Lidl failed to rebut the presumption of bad faith regarding the original and...

Court Disposition

Judgment for Lidl on trade mark infringement (Mark with Text), passing off, and copyright infringement; judgment for Tesco on bad faith invalidity of the Wordless Mark and certain related registrations.

Orders

  • Declaration of trade mark infringement (Mark with Text) against Tesco
  • Declaration of passing off against Tesco