Tatra Nominees Pty Ltd and Hokarra Nominees Pty Ltd, Re

This matter concerns an application by Tatra Nominees Pty Ltd and Hokarra Nominees Pty Ltd to register the trade mark THE LEADING EDGE in class 42 for various marketing and retail services. The application initially faced formality objections regarding the statement of services, which were subsequently amended. However, a late objection was raised by the examiner, asserting that the mark was descriptive of the services offered, as "leading edge" is a laudatory term signifying advanced or vanguard services.

The legal issue before the delegate of the Registrar of Trade Marks was whether the phrase THE LEADING EDGE was inherently adapted to distinguish the applicant's services, or if it was merely descriptive or laudatory. The applicant's attorney argued that the phrase was emotive rather than directly descriptive, and that prior registrations of "LEADING EDGE" indicated its registrability. The examiner maintained that the phrase had become common parlance for advanced services, and that its meaning had evolved beyond its original technical connotations.

The delegate considered the definition of "leading edge" and concluded that while it originated in technological fields, it had entered common usage across all endeavours to denote innovation and advancement over competitors. The delegate found that the phrase would be understood by consumers to indicate that the applicant employed the most advanced techniques in its field, thus conveying a laudatory and descriptive meaning. Relying on the principle that a mark which is merely laudatory or descriptive is generally refused registration, even if it has acquired distinctiveness through use, and noting the absence of evidence of user to counter the inherent non-distinctiveness, the delegate refused the application.

The delegate ordered that application number 585177 for the trade mark THE LEADING EDGE be refused registration in both Part A and Part B of the register.