No, “Pablo Escobar” cannot be a registered trademark in the European Union, The court settled this Wednesday, responding to a Puerto Rican company that wanted to use the name of the deceased Colombian drug trafficker to sell various products and services.
The General Court of the EU, which is based in Luxembourg, ruled in favor of the European Union Intellectual Protection Office (EUIPO), which had refused to register that trademark because it judged it “contrary to public order and good customs.”
The company Escobar Inc., established in the United States territory of Puerto Rico, requested to register the “word sign” Pablo Escobar as a Union trademark to the EUIPO in 2021. Given the agency’s refusal, the company filed an appeal, considering that the right to the presumption of innocence of Pablo Escobar, who was never criminally convicted, was being violated.
However, this Wednesday, the court noted that “has not been violated” andfundamental right and argued that the EUIPO “could base its assessment on the perception of reasonable Spaniards, with average thresholds of sensitivity and tolerance and who share the indivisible and universal values on which the Union is based”, with the Spanish public being the more likely to know the figure of Escobar in Europe.
“In Spain, [Pablo Escobar] “It is publicly perceived as a symbol of organized crime, responsible for numerous crimes.”the court said in a statement.
According to the court, “EUIPO correctly estimated that these people associate the name of Pablo Escobar with drug trafficking and narcoterrorism, as well as with the crimes and suffering derived from them, more than with his possible good works in favor of the poor in Colombia”, as the brand promoters defended.
Pablo Escobar, founder and leader of the Medellín cartel, was killed by the police in that Colombian city in 1993. The court did not specify what the “wide range of products and services” proposed by the company consisted of.
It may interest you
Source: Gestion
Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
