Baugur to sue Icelandic persons over fraud

Baugur is planning to sue five individuals in Iceland, including a top politician, a judge and a newspaper editor, over fraud allegations thrown out of court last month.

Several current and former directors of Baugur, including chief executive Jon Asgeir Johannesson and his father, were accused of embezzlement but the charges were rejected by a court in Reyjavic two weeks ago.

Now Baugur, whose British high street interests range from fashion house Karen Millen to toyshop Hamleys, is seeking damages amid claims of political influence-peddling and secret romantic affairs, which it believes have poisoned the island's community against it.

Fashion designers’ ideas protected by law

According to the British Patent Office fashion designers could be doing more to protect their ideas from theft. Changes in the design registration law, which were made at the end of last year, mean that designers can make a stronger case against counterfeiters. Designers can now register single design items, like those shown on the catwalk during events like the London Fashion Week. Until this recent change designers had to make at least 50 items via an industrial process before they had a chance of qualification.

A second change is that the design itself is protected and that this is not limited to a specific garment. This means a fabric pattern, once registered, would be protected wherever it appeared, whether on any type of garment or another product.

Designers now have up to a year from first displaying their designs in which to apply for registration, enabling them to test the market before deciding which designs they wish to protect.

From next year on an EU-wide single design registration system will be established at the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM) in Alicante, Spain. Once a registration is accepted it will be enforceable across the 15 member states.

09-16-02

EU Court rules in favour of Levi Strauss

Britain's biggest supermarket group Tesco Plc lost a landmark ruling on cut-price designer goods. Europe's highest court ruled that privately owned US jeans maker Levi Strauss can prevent Tesco from importing products into the European Economic Area from outside the EU and selling them at knock-down prices without its permission.

The ruling will have wide implications. "It is very disappointing for customers," a spokesman for Tesco said. "We had a tremendous opportunity here to buy from places like America and that has been denied to us for the time being." "Our campaign will go on. " Tesco said it will carry on selling products such as Levi 501s sourced from within the EU and expects to sell £150 million worth of "grey market" products this year. However, it had hoped to double the supply by also picking up stock outside the EU, in places like the US. "The jeans we are selling for £30 could have been knocked down to £25 and we could have significantly increased the quantity, carrying the full range, all sizes and colours. We could have easily doubled the £110m if we had won."

The decision of the European Court of Justice is now binding for a final rule to be made by British courts. Originally, perfume and tobacco company Zino Davidoff had joined the case on the side of Levi Strauss, and discount retailer Costco on Tesco's side. With the ruling, the court finally declared that retailers in the European Union need the approval of the trademark owner to buy merchandise outside the EEA and sell them at prices below the suggested prices of the manufacturer or its authorised agents.
Source: Reuters december 2001.