A TRADE DISPUTE

New Zealand Times, Volume L, Issue 11665, 1 November 1923, Page 6

A TRADE DISPUTE

RESULT OF LITIGATION. JUDGMENT DELIVERED. Judgment was delivered by Mr Justice MacGregor in the Supreme Court yesterday in the action between Lewis Berger and Sons (Australia), Ltd., appellant, and the Ratten Paint Company, respondent. His Honour said: “This is an appeal by Lewis Berger and Sons (Australia), Ltd., against a decision otf tbe Registrar of Patents, 'by which he refused to register the above company's trademark in respect of paints. The decision now appealed from was given on May 26th, 1321, while the application for registration in respect of which it was given bears date so far back as June 25th, 1918. At the hearing no adequate explanation was made of this extraordinary delay, but the respondent’s counsel took no objection to the present proceeding on this ground. The notice of appeal itself is dated June 21st, 1921, and the appeal now comes to be determined by me under “The Patents, Designs and Trademarks Act, 1911," which was repealed in 1921 and replaced by the present statute dealing with the same subject matter.” His Honour was of opirron that the appeal against the Registrar’s decision should be disallowed. The appellant’s application must accordingly be accepted, and registration of its trademark -permitted. He did not think that any costs should be allowed, in view of the long delay that had taken place in prosecuting the appeal. At the hearing Mr C. G. White appeared for the appellant, and Mr C. H. Treadwell for the respondent.