Monday, June 19 2006
HAVANA, June 19 /PRNewswire/ - Despite a setback in the U.S. Supreme Court,
CUBATABACO, the Cuban cigar company, announced today that it will continue to fight for the rights to the COHIBA trademark in the United States. COHIBA is Cuba's most renowned cigar brand, but cannot be sold in the U.S. because of the U.S. economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba.
Cubatabaco made its announcement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's June 19, 2006 order denying review of a lower court ruling that, in the absence of specific U.S. government permission, the U.S. blockade bars Cubatabaco from obtaining judicial protection of its COHIBA trademark in the United States. Cubatabaco will now pursue its pending application for U.S. government permission from the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, which administers the U.S. blockade.
In its amicus curiae brief filed in the Supreme Court, the United States specifically acknowledged that Cubatabaco could pursue this option. If granted, U.S. government permission would allow Cubatabaco to seek judicial protection for its COHIBA trademark despite the blockade.
Cubatabaco is attempting to stop General Cigar Co., Inc., a major U.S. cigar company, from using the COHIBA trademark for cigars in the U.S. In April 2004, Judge Robert W. Sweet, of the United States District Court in New York, issued a judgment in Cubatabaco's favor, after finding that that the Cuban COHIBA was "famous" among U.S. consumers before General Cigar began using the trademark. Without reaching the merits of Judge Sweet's ruling, the court of appeals in New York vacated the district court judgment on the ground that a U.S. government license was needed to grant relief to Cubatabaco.
In seeking U.S. government permission, Cubatabaco will emphasize the United States' international obligations to protect "well-known" trademarks, such as COHIBA, under the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, a multilateral treaty, and TRIPs, a WTO agreement. Cubatabaco will also emphasize reciprocity: Cuba has permitted hundreds of U.S. companies to register and maintain over 5,000 trademarks in Cuba.
Cuba's world-famous COHIBA is generally considered Cuba's finest cigar, and is made entirely of Cuban-grown tobacco. The Cuban COHIBA consistently attains the highest ratings in U.S. cigar publications, ranking well ahead of General Cigar's Cohiba-labeled Dominican cigar.
The Cuban COHIBA always bears the famous Cuban COHIBA trade dress, which Cubatabaco indisputably owns in the United States. Cubatabaco will vigorously defend against any infringement of its COHIBA trade dress. General Cigar has no right to use the Cuban COHIBA trade dress and has no access to genuine Cuban tobacco, which is responsible for the unparalleled quality of the authentic Cuban COHIBA.
Source: Cubatabaco
