Abstract
This paper revisits two Japanese trademark disputes, one from the 1980s and the other from the 1990s, using linguistic analysis to comment on and supplement the more legalistic deliberations that decided them. In a claim by White Horse Distillers against Toa Distiller’s use of a golden horse label and logo, the courts considered the perspective of the ordinary consumer in ruling that no confusion between the two products was likely. However, in settling Chanel Group’s claim against a small bar the courts prioritised commercial interests over sociolinguistic perceptions in ruling against the bar’s use of the Chanel name and one somewhat similar to it.
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Notes
The information regarding unfair competition prevention law was mainly from Doi [5].
See the “Appendix” for the trademarks of White Horse and Golden Horse.
In the UK, Australia, and Canada the spelling 'whisky' is used while 'whiskey' is used in Ireland and the US, although ‘whisky’ is used for Bourbon. Toa Shuzo uses the British spelling.
Judgment of 25 April 1983, Tokyo District Court 465.
Judgment of 29 November 1984, Tokyo High Court 2044.
Judgment of 1 July 1985, Japanese Supreme Court 580.
Google search engine, accessed 12 August 2004.
http://www.nzmusic.com/topic.cfm?i=1260. The dropping of the initial capital is probably not related to the name itself but reflects a current trend, especially in social media, to dispense with upper case letters, given that the first word is also in lower case.
E-mail correspondence with Freda Smith, a staff member at Whitehorse City Office, 8 January 2004.
Notice on the wall of the bathing facilities.
‘Snack’ (スナック), which can also be used in Japanese to convey light food similarly to its English usage, is a typical label for a small bar where the main focus is on drinking rather than eating.
Personal interview with the proprietress of Snack Chanel on 26 November 1998.
Interview with the proprietress of Snack Chanel on 26 November 1998.
シャネル.
Extrapolated by perusal of phone books for Tokyo, Yokosuka, Miura and Takasaki, which cover a range of urban and semi-urban area.
Judgment of 26 January 1994, Chiba District Court 673.
In this it referred to the Supreme Court decision of National Football League Properties v. Marutake Shoji on 29 May 1983.
Judgment of 29 September 1994, Tokyo High Court 571.
Article 1…therewith may demand cessation of such an act: (2) Act of using an indication identical with or similar to such full name, trade name, mark of the other person or any such other indication of the business and good will of the other person as widely known in the territory where this law is in force and thereby causing confusion with the business establishment or activities of the other person;…
Judgment of 10 September 1998, Supreme Court 637.
Asahi Shimbun, “Snack Chanel Yappari Dame: Saikousai ga Tenmei Kinshi (Turned Out To Be No Good Snack Chanel Name Again: Supreme Court Prohibits Snack Bar’s Name).
Telephone interview with the proprietress on 25 April 1999.
Japanese words are written variously in kanji (Sino-Japanese characters); hiragana (phonetic syllables); katakana (a parallel set of phonetic syllables); or a combination of kanji and hiragana or katakana.
Judgment of 25 March 1987, Kobe District Court 94.
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Okawara, M.H. Japanese Trademark Cases in Linguistic and Economic Contexts. Int J Semiot Law 32, 849–873 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-019-09646-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-019-09646-z