Cubatabaco wins latest round in US trademark tussle

The US Supreme Court handed a victory to Cubatabaco on Monday by refusing to intervene in a legal case against a US-based rival firm over the Cohiba trademark that both use for their cigars, according to a story in the Latin American Herald Tribune.

The high court refused to hear an appeal by US firm General Cigar seeking to overturn a ruling issued last June by a federal appeals court that found in favor of Cubatabaco.

The decision allows the Cuban firm once again to request that the patent on the Cohiba brand registered by the Delaware-based General Cigar be cancelled, a move the firm must direct to the US Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.

The dispute dates back to 2009 when Cubatabaco won a lawsuit against General Cigar for using and marketing the Cohiba brand name for the latter’s products in the US.

The US firm, which in 1992 began selling Dominican tobacco products under the Cuban Cohiba trademark, appealed the ruling.

The full story is at: http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2375387&CategoryId=14510