China Top Court Finds Unfair Competition in Lukfook Trade Name Case

China's Supreme People's Court issued a retrial judgment finding unfair competition in a dispute involving the well-known "Lukfook" or "Liu Fu" jewelry trademark. A jewelry company had acquired and used the mark "Jin Liu Fu Shang Mei," which includes characters similar to "Liu Fu," as part of its enterprise name and licensed it for use on jewelry goods.

The court determined that the company, as a competitor in the same industry, was aware of the prior registered and reputed "Lukfook" mark yet deliberately chose a similar identifier. This created a risk of consumer confusion regarding origin or affiliation.

The decision overturned a lower court's finding that formal registration and use of the enterprise name prevented an unfair competition claim. The SPC emphasized the subjective intent to attach to the trademark's goodwill and the objective likelihood of misassociation.

The ruling reinforces protections against trade-name squatting or imitation of well-known marks in China, clarifying that compliance with enterprise name rules does not shield parties from liability under the Anti-Unfair Competition Law when trademark rights are implicated.

Sources: https://trademarklawyermagazine.com/trademark-news/ https://mmlcgroup.com/insights/