LACOSTE &ANR Vs. AMAN JAIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This suit is filed by the plaintiffs seeking a decree of permanent injunction directing the defendants, etc. from using the trade mark LACOSTE and Crocodile Device or any other mark or trade mark deceptively or confusingly similar to the said trade mark. Other connected relies are also sought.

(2.) It is the case of the plaintiffs that it is a registered proprietor of LACOSTE (Stylized) and Crocodile Device in India. Details for registration are given in para 4 of the plaint. It is pleaded that the history of these trademarks goes back to early 1930s. Plaintiff No. 1 was founded by the famous tennis player Jean Rane Lacoste who won men's single tournament twice at Wimbledon in 1925 and 1928 and other tennis championships. The first trade mark filings of the mark "Crocodile Device" is said to have been filed in the Commercial Court of Troyes, France on April 27, 1933. The brands were launched in India in October 1993 on the opening of the first LACOSTE Boutique.

(3.) It is pleaded that the sales of these products manufactured by the plaintiffs have been increased by leaps and bounds. Plaintiff No. 2 has already set up 24 LACOSTE boutiques across different states and cities in India. The plaintiffs' trademarks LACOSTE and Crocodile Device for the last many decades have been extensively advertised in several leading international publications, periodicals, media and other circulations.