The London Taxi Corporation Ltd trading as The London Taxi Company v Frazer-Nash Research Ltd and Another
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judge | Lord Justice Floyd,Lord Justice Kitchin |
| Judgment Date | 01 November 2017 |
| Neutral Citation | [2017] EWCA Civ 1729 |
| Docket Number | Case No: A3/2016/0867 |
| Court | Court of Appeal (Civil Division) |
| Date | 01 November 2017 |
[2017] EWCA Civ 1729
Lord Justice Kitchin
and
Lord Justice Floyd
Case No: A3/2016/0867
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL (CIVIL DIVISION)
ON APPEAL FROM THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE
CHANCERY DIVISION
MR JUSTICE ARNOLD
Royal Courts of Justice Strand, London, WC2A 2LL
Douglas Campbell QC (instructed by Browne Jacobson LLP) for the Appellant
Mark Platts-Mills QC and Maxwell Keay (instructed by Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP) for the Respondents
Hearing dates: 18 th–20 th July 2017
Is the shape of a London taxi a valid registered trade mark? The claimant and appellant The London Taxi Corporation Limited ("LTC") contends that it can be. It further contends that the defendants and respondents Frazer-Nash Research Limited ("FNR") and Ecotive Limited ("Ecotive") threaten to infringe two of its registered trade marks ("the LTC marks") which depict models of its taxis, by launching a new London taxi, the new Metrocab. After a trial, Arnold J held that both of the LTC marks were invalid on a number of grounds, and that one of them should be revoked for non-use. Further, even if the LTC marks had been valid, he held that they would not be infringed by the new Metrocab. He also dismissed a claim founded on the common law tort of passing off.
LTC's taxis
LTC is the successor in title to the manufacturer of the Fairway, TX1, TXII and TX4 models of London taxi and claims to be the owner of the goodwill in the shapes of all four models. The judge helpfully included photographs of the Fairway, the TX1 and the TX4 in his judgment, and I reproduce them in an Annex to this judgment along with other taxi designs to which I will refer in due course. The TXII is not materially different from the TX1.
The trade marks in issue
The LTC marks depict the shapes of the Fairway and of the TX1/TXII models respectively. Thus, LTC is the registered proprietor of Community Trade Mark No. 951871 registered as of 5 October 1998 in respect of "motor vehicles, accessories for motor vehicles; parts and fittings for the aforesaid" in Class 12 ("the CTM"). The CTM is a three-dimensional trade mark represented as follows:
LTC is also the registered proprietor of United Kingdom Trade Mark No. 2440659 registered as of 1 December 2006 in respect of "cars; cars, all being taxis" in Class 12 ("the UKTM"). The UKTM is a three-dimensional trade mark represented as follows:
LTC's other trade marks
LTC also owns a number of other registered trade marks designating the make and models of its taxis, including the word marks "Fairway" and "TX1" and these logos:
LTC affix these trade marks to their taxis in the form of badges on the grilles and boots.
The Metrocab
The respondents are the successors in title to the manufacturers of a number of models of London taxi, including the Metrocab. The first version of the Metrocab (see the Annex) was launched in 1986. A later version was the Metrocab TTT (also shown in the Annex). In around 2002 or 2003 FNR began work on developing an electric taxi. After an extensive process of development and testing, FNR decided instead to work on a hybrid electric Metrocab. This led FNR to produce a prototype hybrid vehicle based on the Metrocab TTT. The judge sets out the details of the lengthy development project at paragraphs [82] to [143] of his judgment. At trial, it was part of LTC's case that the respondents had deliberately set out to deceive the public with their design of taxi, but that allegation was rejected by the judge and is no longer advanced by LTC, and so it is not necessary for me to refer to that history in any detail.
The judge quoted, and accepted, the following passage from the evidence of Mr Siddiqi, FNR's witness:
"I am aware that those involved in the trade, our competitors, passengers and Transport for London alike all have certain perceptions as to how a licensed London cab 'should look' …. there is, effectively, a barrier to entry in the market for licensed cabs which are not recognisable as such – i.e. if a vehicle does not look like a licensed cab, passengers are less likely to hail it. … FNR wanted to avoid producing a taxi which may struggle to generate business if it was not recognised by Londoners as a licensed London cab. … As a result — in very broad terms — I directed the design of a cab which was recognisable as a licensed London cab at a generic level, drawing on the entire history of the sector and the British heritage of automotive designs, but that is distinctive and which clearly differentiates itself from LTC's cabs."
The alleged infringement, and the target of the passing off action, the new Metrocab, is shown in the two photographs reproduced in the Annex. We were told that it is yet to be launched: and so the action is effectively quia timet.
The vehicles have, however, been shown at some events. Thus they were displayed at the New Taxis for London event on 16 January 2014, and the Mayor was photographed driving one. Both the Mayor's Press Office and the participating manufacturers issued press releases in advance of the event. The defendants' press release quoted "Metrocab Chairman" Sir Charles Masefield as saying (emphasis added):
"The all-new Range Extended Electric Metrocab has been in development since the mid-2000s with several prototypes built and over a million kilometres of testing. Instantly recognisable as an iconic London Hackney Cab with a panoramic glass roof for views of the City, our new all-British London cab offers, for no price premium, completely new levels of economy, emissions and passenger comfort and is ready to enter service this year, benefitting [sic] the passenger, driver, city and environment alike." (emphasis supplied).
The Vito
In June 2008 Mercedes launched its Vito taxi. This is a converted van design. In the spring of 2011 Mercedes introduced a revised version, which is that shown in the Annex.
A substantial number of Vito taxis have been sold to taxi drivers and licensed private hire operators in London. The judge found that many taxi drivers consider that the appearance of the Vito counts against it. There was "considerable evidence" that some hirers react unfavourably to the Vito. This is manifested by potential passengers walking past Vitos at ranks and hailing LTC cabs rather than Vitos on the street. Although this might be an aesthetic preference, or due to a concern that the hirer might have to pay a premium rate for what appears to be a larger vehicle, it was clear that some hirers either did not perceive the Vito as a proper licensed London taxi or at least were concerned that it might not be. This perception appeared to be most common amongst tourists but was not so restricted.
The regulation of London taxis
Taxis and taxi drivers are regulated by legislation and regulations, stemming back to the London Hackney Carriages Acts in the 19 th century. In 2000 the licensing responsibility carried on by the Public Carriage Office was transferred to the new Greater London Authority and became part of Transport for London ("TfL"). Both taxis and their drivers must be licensed by TfL, and TfL also fix the scale of fares to be charged. The Conditions of Fitness contained other requirements, such as the maximum wheel turning circle.
Although the Conditions of Fitness did not dictate the appearance of vehicles that could be licensed as London taxis, the Public Carriage Office, TfL, and even the Mayor of London, had clear views on the subject and were not hesitant to make them known to manufacturers. It became clear that the PCO and TfL were " keen for British traditions to be preserved with regard to the 'look' of any new licensed London cab" in order to " ensure they are recognisable as taxis licensed for hire in London'.
The legislative provisions
Articles 3, 5 and 6 of the European Parliament and Council Directive 2008/95/EC of 22 October 2008 to approximate the laws of the Member States relating to trade marks (codified version replacing Directive 89/104/EEC) ("the Directive") provide, so far as relevant, as follows:
" Article 3
Grounds for refusal or invalidity
1. The following shall not be registered or, if registered, shall be liable to be declared invalid:
..
(b) trade marks which are devoid of any distinctive character;
…
(e) signs which consist exclusively of:
…
(iii) the shape which gives substantial value to the goods;
…
3. A trade mark shall not be refused registration or be declared invalid in accordance with paragraph 1(b), (c) or (d) if, before the date of application for registration and following the use which has been made of it, it has acquired a distinctive character. Any Member State may in addition provide that this provision shall also apply where the distinctive character was acquired after the date of application for registration or after the date of registration.
Article 5
Rights conferred by a trade mark
1. The registered trade mark shall confer on the proprietor exclusive rights therein. The proprietor shall be entitled to prevent all third parties not having his consent from using in the course of trade:
…
(b) any sign where, because of its identity with, or similarity to, the trade mark and the identity or similarity of the goods or services covered by the trade mark and the sign, there exists a likelihood of confusion on the part of the public; the likelihood of confusion includes the likelihood of association between the sign and the trade mark.
2. Any Member State may also provide that the proprietor shall be entitled to prevent all third parties not having his consent from using in the course of trade any sign which is identical with, or similar to, the trade...
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