Global fast-food giant Burger King has lost a lengthy 13-year legal battle over its trademark against a local eatery in Pune, India.
The dispute centred around the use of the name “Burger King,” which both the American company and the Pune-based restaurant share.
The Pune District Court – under Judge Sunil Vedpathak – dismissed Burger King’s lawsuit on August 16, ruling in favour of the local restaurant owners, Anahita and Shapoor Irani.
The court noted that the Pune eatery had been operating under the “Burger King” name since 1991-1992, well before the US company entered the Indian market in 2014.
Burger King had filed the suit in 2011, seeking a permanent injunction to prevent the Pune eatery from using the “Burger King” name, along with monetary damages of US$ (Rs 20 lakh) for alleged trademark infringement and loss of business.
The company argued that its trademark, established in 1954, had garnered a strong global reputation, and any unauthorised use would harm its goodwill and business interests.
However, the court found that Burger King failed to prove that the Pune eatery’s use of the name had caused any customer confusion or damage to its brand.
“The plaintiff has miserably failed to prove that the eatery here had infringed its trademark while running the restaurant in Pune,” said the court.
Judge Vedpathak’s order highlighted the lack of evidence provided by Burger King Corporation to support its claims of trademark infringement and actual damages.
“In the absence of cogent evidence, I find that the plaintiff is not entitled to damages, rendition of accounts, and the relief of perpetual injunction,” said Dedpathak.
The owners of the Pune-based Burger King, the Iranis, had opposed the suit, accusing the Canadian company of filing it with “malicious intentions” to discourage local businesses.
The Iranis argued that apart from the name, there was no similarity between their restaurant and the plaintiff’s trademark. They also claimed to have faced harassment and intimidation since the suit was filed, for which they sought compensation.
Despite the ruling in their favour, the court did not grant the Iranis any monetary relief, noting that they had only provided oral evidence to support their claims of “mental pain and agony”.
This case in Pune is not the first time Burger King Corporation has faced challenges with its trademark in international markets. In Australia, for instance, the company operates under the name “Hungry Jack’s” because another entity already owns the “Burger King” brand.
