Silhouette International Schmied AG v Aust Opthalmic Supplies Pty Ltd

Silhouette International Schmied AG (Silhouette) appealed to the Full Federal Court against a decision of a single judge of that court. The dispute concerned the alleged infringement of Silhouette's Australian trade mark registration for the word mark "Silhouette" used in relation to eyewear. Aust Opthalmic Supplies Pty Ltd (AOS) was the respondent and had been using the mark "Silhouette" in relation to its own eyewear products.

The primary legal issue before the Full Federal Court was whether AOS's use of the mark "Silhouette" in relation to its eyewear constituted an infringement of Silhouette's registered trade mark. This involved a consideration of whether the marks were deceptively similar, and if so, whether the use by AOS was in relation to goods or services for which the Silhouette mark was registered, or goods or services that were closely related.

The Full Federal Court applied the principles of trade mark infringement as set out in the *Trade Marks Act 1995* (Cth). It considered the degree of visual, phonetic, and conceptual similarity between the marks. The court found that there was a significant degree of similarity between the marks, and that the goods in question, namely eyewear, were identical. Consequently, the court held that AOS had infringed Silhouette's trade mark.

The Full Federal Court allowed the appeal and ordered that AOS be restrained from infringing Silhouette's trade mark.