Opposition by Boolabox, Inc. to registration of trade mark application 1899381 (21) – YUMLOCK (Figurative) – in the name of Artspeed Pty Ltd

This matter concerned an opposition by Boolabox, Inc. (the Opponent) to the registration of the trade mark application 1899381, YUMLOCK (Figurative), in the name of Artspeed Pty Ltd (the Applicant). The decision was made by Nicholas Smith, a Delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks.

The legal issues before the Delegate were whether the Opponent had established any of the grounds of opposition it had nominated, specifically under sections 42(b), 44, 58, 60, and 62A of the *Trade Marks Act 1995* (Cth). The Opponent, an American company involved in the design, manufacture, and sale of lunchboxes, relied on its ownership of registered trade marks for similar goods. The relevant date for determining the rights of the parties was 10 January 2018, the priority date of the application.

The Delegate found that the Opponent had successfully established the ground of opposition under section 44 of the Act. In reaching this conclusion, the Delegate considered the similarity between the YUMLOCK mark and the Opponent's trade marks, noting that the common element "yum" was key to the conceptual meaning of both marks. Despite differences in the suffixes, the Delegate determined that, allowing for imperfect recollection, there was a real and tangible danger of deception or confusion arising from the use of the YUMLOCK mark. Consequently, the Delegate refused to register the trade mark and awarded costs to the Opponent.