EU court rules 'Pablo Escobar' may not be registered as a trademark
The name of the notorious Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar may not be registered as a trademark for goods or services in the EU.
The EU General Court in Luxembourg ruled on Wednesday that the name is associated with drug trafficking, crime and human suffering, and should not be given protection under intellectual property laws.
The Escobar company, based in Puerto Rico, wanted to register the term "Pablo Escobar" as a trademark at the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) as protection for a wide range of goods and services.
The office rejected the application on the grounds that it would be contrary to public morality. Escobar, who died in 1993, is regarded as Colombia's most feared drug baron. He founded the Medellín cartel, earned billions from smuggling cocaine to the US and is said to be responsible for the deaths of thousands of people.
The company filed a lawsuit at the EU court - and has now lost. The judges ruled that Escobar was largely not associated with any good deeds he is claimed to have carried out on behalf of the poor in Colombia. The application, the judges decided, therefore violated moral values and standards.
Escobar was never convicted under criminal law. However, he is regarded as a symbol of gangsterism and was himself responsible for numerous crimes, so the court ruled that it would not violate the presumption of innocence if the trademark was not registered.
The judgment can still be appealed against before the highest European court, the European Court of Justice.
