Lenovo (Singapore) Pte Ltd v Reza Najafi

This decision concerns an application to register a trade mark, application number 2071042, by Lenovo (Singapore) Pte Ltd (the applicant) and an opposition brought by Reza Najafi (the opponent). The decision was made by Bianca Irgang, acting as Registrar.

The primary legal issue before the Registrar was whether to register the trade mark, having regard to the grounds on which the application was opposed. Specifically, the Registrar was required to determine whether any of the grounds of opposition had been established.

The Registrar found that the opponent had successfully established the section 44 ground of opposition as pursued. Applying section 55(1) of the Act, which mandates a decision to refuse or register a trade mark based on established grounds of opposition, the Registrar determined that registration of the trade mark must be refused. The Registrar also awarded costs against the applicant in favour of the opponent, following the usual principle that costs follow the event.