Campomar Sociedad Limitada and Campomar S.L. v Nike International Ltd

This matter came before Debrett Lyons, a Hearings Officer acting as the delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks. The proceedings concerned an application by Campomar Sociedad Limitada and Campomar S.L. (Campomar) for permission to serve further evidence in opposition proceedings against Nike International Ltd (Nike). Campomar sought to introduce evidence detailing its appointment of an Australian distributor and subsequent sales of goods bearing the NIKE trade mark in Australia.

The primary legal issue was whether Campomar should be granted permission to serve this further evidence, pursuant to regulation 5.15 of the Trade Mark Regulations 1995. This required the Hearings Officer to be satisfied that the admission of the evidence was appropriate, considering factors such as whether the evidence could have been obtained earlier with reasonable diligence, its likely effect on the outcome, and its credibility. The Hearings Officer also had to ensure that both parties were given a reasonable opportunity to make representations concerning the application.

In reaching a decision, the Hearings Officer considered the circumstances, including the previous High Court dispute between the parties over the same trade mark, their awareness of the registrations' vulnerability due to non-use, Campomar's difficulties in establishing an Australian distributorship, and the interest in a complete picture being before the decision-maker. The Hearings Officer was satisfied that the proposed evidence was appropriate and that the opponent, Nike, had not expressed any serious urgency for a swift resolution. Consequently, the Hearings Officer allowed Campomar's application to serve the specified further evidence by 7 January 2011, with Nike to respond by 7 March 2011. No award of costs was made.