Ugandan commercial court assists in the battle to fight cavities
23/06/2009

Adams & Adams acted for Colgate-Palmolive Company in Uganda when a product with similar packaging to its own came onto the market.

The Ugandan Revenue Authority (URA) had detained toothpaste products which substantially imitate Colgate-Palmolive Company’s Colgate Herbal toothpaste packaging. The only difference in the packaging is the use of the mark “Collage” instead of “Colgate”. The manner in which it is represented makes it easy for the word to be mistaken for the famous Colgate brand.

There is a draft Counterfeit Goods Bill in the pipeline in Uganda which is very similar to South Africa’s Counterfeit Goods Act 37 of 1997, but has not yet been passed by the Ugandan government.

Adams & Adams brought an urgent ex parte application for Colgate-Palmolive Company before the Commercial Division of the Uganda High Court. On the basis of trade mark infringement and passing off, the company applied for an order interdicting the importer from receiving the goods from the URA, pending the hearing of a substantive application for an interim interdict.

The urgent interim interdict was granted in favour of Colgate-Palmolive Company and the court later upheld this, pending the outcome of an action instituted by the same company.

In the action, Colgate-Palmolive Company is seeking delivery of the offending goods for destruction, that the warehousing costs of the goods for the duration of the action be borne by the importer, and that the importer must account for all the profits it has made from the sale of the Collage toothpaste, which must be awarded to the plaintiff.
Werina Griffiths
Professional Assistant
werina-g@adamsadams.co.za