Burger King lawsuit against Pune eatery, its counterclaim dismissed by court

Burger King Corporation initially sued couple Anahita and Shapoor Irani of the Pune eatery for allegedly infringing its trademark in a 13 year old case

Updated on: Aug 19, 2024, 14:51:04 IST

By HT News Desk | Edited by Abhyjith K. Ashokan

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The Pune district court dismissed an application which was filed by US fast-food chain Burger King Corporation (BKC) for restraining an Indian eatery with the same name from using the ‘Burger King’ trademark, according to an Economic Times report, which added that district Judge Sunil G. Vedpathak also dismissed the counterclaim filed by the Pune-based company.

The Burger King logo is displayed at a Burger King fast food restaurant on January 17, 2024 in Burbank, California. (Mario Tama/Getty Images via AFP)

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Why did Burger King Corporation (BKC) sue the Pune eatery with the same name?

This is a case which has now been running for 13 years.

Burger King Corporation initially sued couple Anahita and Shapoor Irani of the eatery for allegedly infringing its trademark, seeking the court to restrain them from using the name as well as also seeking damages.

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The Pune eatery owners countersued Burger King Corporation and sought ₹20 lakh as compensatory damages for all the mental pain and agony they had to go through.

What were the details of the Burger King Corporation lawsuit and what were the grounds they argued on?

The US-based Burger King Corporation opened its first Indian store in November 2014, but the Pune eatery had been operating since 1989 and had also been using the name ‘Burger King’ since 1992.

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However, Burger King Corporation stated that it already had a tremendous reputation and goodwill worldwide, with awareness spilling over to India as well. The eatery argued that the lawsuit was malafide and had the intention of discouraging business people.

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