Vintners off to kangaroo court
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Aussie vintners hope a Canadian wine company will roo the day it allegedly used a logo featuring Australia's favourite marsupial.
Casella Wines is hopping mad at similarities between their Yellow Tail label and that of Wallaroo Trail, which is distributed by Constellation Brands Canada through retail division The Wine Rack.
Pleading trademark infringement, the Australian winemakers have gone to the Federal Court of Canada about it, setting the stage for litigation and word play.
"In this second round of the boxing match between a kangaroo and a wallaroo ... the kangaroo wins," Judge Sean Harrington wrote in a decision released March 30.
"Lest this be thought to be a kangaroo court, my reasons follow."
The case is no laughing matter to Casella, which is accusing Constellation Brands of offering a "confusing" product; both logos show a stylized profile of a leaping marsupial.
Casella has yet to decide if it will seek damages or a slice of Constellation's profits should the trademark infringement allegation prove successful.
The dispute remains in the early stages.
Harrington's decision dealt mainly with a preliminary matter about what kind of questions a Constellation staffer had to answer during a pre-trial interview process called discovery.
Constellation -- in what Harrington called "very feisty" filings -- has meanwhile submitted a statement of defence and a counterclaim.
It has argued, for instance, that Casella has known about Wallaroo since 2008, "yet lay in the willows to allow Walleroo's market share to increase dramatically before pouncing," according to the judge's summary of Constellation's pleadings.
Constellation has also pointed out that Yellow Tail and Wallaroo Trail are also sold in different establishments, according to the judgment.
In Ontario, Yellow Tail can be found in the LCBO while Wallaroo Trail is sold through Wine Rack outlets.
A trial is still months away, but the matter could be settled out of court.
The American action brought by Casella in its 2010 trademark beef was settled in August 2011, court documents show.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Twitter: @ottawasuntonys
