London-based fried chicken chain Morley’s has won a major Court of Appeal ruling, reinforcing its right to protect its trade marks against rival brand Metro’s.
Morley’s, represented by Peter Hornsey and Sam Walker of Ward Hadaway alongside Chris Pearson of Lamb Chambers, had initially been successful in their claim at the High Court last year. The defendants were found by the Court to be unlawfully infringing the Morley’s brand.
The defendants then cited eight grounds of appeal, all of which were dismissed by the Court of Appeal last month. The judgment reaffirmed that the competing food chain, known as “Metro’s”, had infringed a number of aspects of the Morley’s brand.
Founded in Sydenham in 1985, Morley’s has grown into a cult London brand, now operating more than 100 restaurants across the UK. Known for its fried chicken and burgers, it has featured in music videos by Stormzy and Krept, and the sign from its first branch was recently acquired by the Museum of London.
Shan Selvendran, Managing Director of Morley’s, said: “As a family-owned business, there has been a tremendous amount of hard work over many years that has gone into making Morley’s what it is today.
“We’re so grateful to our loyal customers who come back time and again for our food, our service and our sense of community. People have a real attachment to who we are, and so it was essential we took action when that brand was threatened. I’m delighted with the outcome and with the specialist support of my legal team throughout this process.”
Peter Hornsey, Partner and Joint National Head of Commercial Litigation at Ward Hadaway, said: “This outcome reinforces that the Courts will protect your brand if you have the necessary trade mark protection in place. For those considering sailing close to the wind, it also demonstrates that what you might think is “close” is often “too far”.
“The iconic status of Morley’s makes the protection of its brand all the more important and we’re thrilled with this outcome for Shan and his family.”
Morley’s is the registered owner of a number of trade marks, including its famous logo and the name of its signature dish – the “Triple M” burger. It was successfully argued by Morley’s that both of these marks had been infringed.
In the High Court proceedings, Her Honour Judge Clarke deemed the font, colour scheme and layout of the logo – including the strapline and distinctive style of the letter ‘M’ – used by Metro’s were similar to Morley’s. The Judge then considered whether this was likely to cause confusion on the part of the public, and in combination with similarities across social media and in-store décor, held there was a “likelihood of confusion by a substantial part of that class of average consumer.”
It was held that several of the defendants had infringed Morley’s “Triple M” mark via the sale of an “MMM” burger. The Court agreed that the resulting confusion on the part of the public, due to how a customer would read and say “MMM” aloud when ordering, also constituted an infringement.
The judgment demonstrates the value of protecting your brand with robust registered trade mark protection and of taking action when these trade marks are infringed.