Trade mark decision

BL Number

O/170/07

Decision date

13 June 2007

Hearing officer

Mr Geoffrey Hobbs QC

Mark

RAPIER

Classes

09

Registered Proprietor

Rapier 1 Limited

Applicants for Revocation

Allied Telesyn Inc

Appeal against an interlocutory decision in Revocation

Result

Appeal successful; Hearing Officer’s decision set aside.

Points Of Interest

• Decisions on surrender of registration and re-instatement of proceedings irregular for want of compliance with Rule 54.

Summary

At first instance (see BL O/013/07) the Hearing Officer had used Rule 66 to correct procedural errors and return the parties to the position they would have been in had the errors not taken place. However, as that decision had also resulted in a reversal of the surrender (thus affecting the proprietor’s claim of seniority in respect of a CTM opposition) and a reinstatement of the revocation proceedings in respect of the UK registration the proprietor appealed against the decision.

Following a review of the matter the Appointed Person found that the proprietor was entitled to surrender his registration; the reversal of that action and the re-instatement of the revocation proceedings without a Rule 54 hearing convened for the purpose were irregular.

The Hearing Officer’s decision was set aside.

In his deliberations on the matter of costs the Appointed Person said “I think this is a case in which the Registrar might properly give sympathetic consideration to any request for ex gratia compensation that might be made on behalf of the Proprietor ………”