[Trademarks / Similarity] Tokyo High Court, Heisei 12 (Ne) No. 6252
Updated: Oct 9
Article information
Article type: Case note
Category: Trademarks
Topics: Similarity of trademarks、Distinctiveness
First published on this site: 2026-10-10
Display/classification checked: 2026-10-10
[Trademarks / Similarity] Tokyo High Court, Heisei 12 (Ne) No. 6252
*During prosecution, the applicant emphasized the distinctive spelling “BeaR.”
→ Dissimilar to “bear.”
(Excerpts from the judgment, translated; portions omitted)
[...] In the market for clothing and other designated goods, it is difficult to distinguish one trader’s goods from another’s solely by the pronunciation “bear” or the concept of a bear. It accords with experience that traders and consumers instead distinguish the various “bear” marks by differences in words, devices and other elements added to “bear” and similar terms.
The applicant’s arguments in the written opinion responding to the notice of reasons for refusal [...] expressed its recognition of these general trade circumstances. As emphasized in that opinion, the distinctive spelling of “BeaR,” particularly the emphasis created by the capital final “R,” distinguishes the mark from the ordinary word “bear.”
In other words, among the many registered and actually used marks associated with “bear,” this mark should be understood as being perceived and conceptualized as the distinctive “bear with a capital final R,” and as exercising distinctiveness in that form.
If the mark is viewed as a coined word with “e” and “a” between “B” and “R,” it is not similar to the appellant’s sign in pronunciation or concept. [...]
Original article (2025-08-14):
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This history records actual publication, display, and classification changes made on this site.
2026-10-10: First published the LinkedIn original on this site and set the classification, article information, and consultation link.
2026-10-10: Aligned the translation link, canonical URL and hreflang with the verified public URLs.
2026-10-10: Updated related-article links. The original article text was not changed.
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