Commercial companies made commercial use of the famous artist Salvador Dali’s name for marketing clothing products in Israel. A claim was filed with the Court, claiming, inter alia, that such companies breached a registered trade mark and also a well-known trade mark.
The Court held that the existence of a registered trade mark and a well-known trade mark in Israel gives its owner the exclusive right to use the mark. However, in order to prove the existence of a registered trade mark in Israel a certificate of registration by the Israeli Trademarks Registrar must be presented. To prove the existence of a well-known trade mark one must show, inter alia, that the relevant clientele in Israel recognize the mark and identify it with the origin mark and it is not sufficient that the mark is familiar in other jurisdictions.
The Court dismissed the claim for breach of a registered trade mark because a certificate of registration by the Israeli Trademarks Registrar, indicating that the mark is duly registered in Israel, was not brought forth. Also, it was determined that the name Salvador Dali is not recognized by the consumers in Israel with regards to this type of goods and the public does not identify the goods with the artist Dali, despite being well known artist.