easyGroup loses high court legal action against Easypizza Limited (Case #HC05C00707).
(PRWEB) June 19, 2006 -- easyGroup IP Licensing Limited, the company that holds intellectual property belonging to companies controlled by the controversial Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the founder of easyJet, has abandoned its High Court action against Easypizza Limited and its directors.
Easypizza Limited currently operates in Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey, Islington, and began trading in 1997 where it has developed a steady business in supplying its freshly baked pizza and Italian food and drink products to customers under the Easypizza brand. In 2004, Stelios’s company started its own similarly named easyPizza business serving re-heated frozen pizza on a delivery-only basis to certain parts of the Milton Keynes area and has since expanded in partnership with Famous Moes Pizza into Brighton, Portsmouth, Southampton and Worthing.
Easypizza Limited were represented by Memery Crystal Solicitors and easyGroup were represented by Claire Algar of Collyer Bristow Solicitors. The case became increasingly acrimonious and bitter and a High Court trial of the matter was originally due to commence in February 2006, but easyGroup served a Notice of Discontinuance shortly beforehand. Easypizza Limited then withdrew its own Counterclaim bringing matters to an end although not before the expenditure of several hundred thousand pounds in legal costs on both sides.
David Hansel and Jane Marsden of Memery Crystal acted for Easypizza Limited. David Hansel says, “As with its earlier action for passing off and trade mark infringement against Easyart (who Memery Crystal also successfully defended), easyGroup cannot claim a monopoly over trading names beginning with the word “easy”. This applies even where they have obtained a registered trade mark, but are seeking to stop an earlier trader from using the ‘easy’ name. easyGroup have now been ordered to pay Easypizza Limited’s costs of the action and will not be able to bring another similar action against Easypizza Limited and easypizza.co.uk without the permission of the Court, which we are confident that we would be able to oppose successfully.”
Karl Kahn of EasyPizza says, “Stelios is a rich bully who tried to intimidate us into closing our business. He hired expensive lawyers, private investigators and attempted to force EasyPizza out of business. We didn’t have his resources but we knew we were in the right and thank goodness justice prevailed. We now have a court order protecting us from further interference by Stelios.”
High Court Case #HC05C00707
Chancery Division
Master Bragge
For further information regarding EasyPizza, please contact:
Karl Kahn
EasyPizza Ltd | 48 Topsfield Parade | London N8 8PT
Tel 08712 192 192 | Fax 020 8444 7272
For further information regarding Memery Crystal please contact
David Hansel
Memery Crystal LLP solicitors | 44 Southampton Buildings | London WC2A 1AP
Tel 020 7242 5905 | Fax 020 7242 2058
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