Trade mark fight gets "UGG"ly

Did you know there are multiple “UGG” shoe brands? No, neither did I, until I saw a video posted yesterday by the Australian company, Ugg Since 1974, announcing that they are changing their brand name in all countries other than Australia and New Zealand. 

The video explains that the Australian company has been sued by Deckers Outdoor Corporation, which owns trade mark registrations for UGG in a large number of countries including the US. As a result of the lawsuit, the Australian company will be transitioning to a new name ("SINCE 74") for customers outside of Australia and New Zealand (where they own trade marks and will still operate as UGG SINCE 1974). 

The Australian family-owned brand has been in business for over 50 years and they have a few posts on their website about the different “UGG" brands available in the market and how to differentiate their Australian-made goods. 

The lawsuit with Deckers is apparently still ongoing and this is not the first time that Deckers has taken action against an Australian-based business in respect of Ugg boots. They previously successfully sued the Sydney-based business, Australian Leather, and its owner in relation to the sale of 13 pairs of Ugg boots in the US. 

This is an interesting battle, because “Ugg” is a generic term in Australia for this particular type of shoe and there are numerous trade mark registrations comprising “Ugg" in Australia in respect of footwear that are seemingly co-existing without issue. Indeed, it was argued (without success) in the Australian Leather case that Deckers should never have been able to register the word mark in the US on this basis. 

For now however, it appears that Deckers has the upper hand in respect of the UGG name outside of Australia and New Zealand.