Re Opposition by Long Way Home Holdings Pty Ltd to registration of trade mark application 1875547 (41) - Lion - in the name of Saroo Brierly Enterprises Pty Ltd

This matter concerned an opposition by Long Way Home Holdings Pty Ltd (the Opponent) to the registration of trade mark application number 1875547 (41) in the name of Saroo Brierley Enterprises Pty Ltd (the Applicant). The trade mark in question was the word "LION". The Opponent, which produced the film "Lion", argued that the mark should not be registered. The decision was made by Robert Wilson, a Hearing Officer and delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks.

The legal issues before the Hearing Officer were whether the grounds of opposition raised by the Opponent had been established, particularly in relation to sections 42(b), 58, 60, and 62A of the *Trade Marks Act 1995* (Cth). These sections deal with various grounds for opposing trade mark registration, including misrepresentation, use of the mark by the applicant, and whether the mark is the name of a film.

The Hearing Officer found that the Opponent had failed to establish any of the grounds of opposition. The evidence indicated that the Applicant's director, Saroo Brierley, was the subject of the film "Lion" and that "Sheru", a phonetic equivalent of his name, means "Lion" in Hindi. Mr Brierley's memoir, "A Long Way Home", was published in 2013, and the film of his memoir was released in 2016. The Hearing Officer concluded that the name "Lion" referred to Mr Brierley and was part of his personal brand and journey, and that the Opponent had not demonstrated that the mark was solely the name of a film in a way that would preclude its registration as a trade mark by the Applicant.

Accordingly, the Hearing Officer decided that the trade mark application could proceed to registration, subject to a one-month period from the decision date, unless an appeal was filed. The Opponent was also ordered to pay the Applicant's costs.