" Ownership " Rights !

When most Australians hear the term " Ugg " they think of footwear.  In particular, they think of boots made from sheep hide with the wool on the inside to keep the wearer's feet cosy and warm. This was an iconic Australian invention and it probably evolved when the early settlers had little choice than to improvise in a raw new country.

Now ownership of the word  " Ugg " is heading into court in the United States.  Back in 1990 the giant Deckers corporation bought a small firm that manufactured Ugg boots from Australian surfer and entrepreneur, Brian Smith.   They then proceeded to register " UGG " as their trademark in a hundred and thirty countries, including Australia.

"Ugg" boots are made and sold here by Australian Leather, a firm with just nine employees and about thirty contractors.  Deckers claim that Australian Leather is infringing their copyright and demands that they desist.   They are playing hardball by insisting that this little Australian firm not only pay damages, but ship their remaining product to the US so that Deckers can have it destroyed.

It looks to be a " David and Goliath " contest.  A very rich American corporation doing battle in a foreign court system with a small competitor whose very existence is at stake.  At issue is whether " Ugg " is a generic name - which it is impossible to protect with personal  ownership.   The law is very strict on preventing generics being converted to trade symbols which prevent their common use to describe a type of article.

There is pressure building for the Australian government to intervene.  If the Australian manufacturer lacks the financial muscle to take on a rich corporation in a very expensive court action it could lead to an  Australian heritage item being permanently lost to this country.   It can be argued that " Ugg " was clearly a generic term and therefore not the property of any person to sell.

Some years ago a clash between a giant corporation and a small business gained media attention when it made its way through the courts.  The brand name " Target " was expanding its empire and it created a new store in Launceston, Tasmania.    There was already a store selling a similar range of goods that had been operated there by a family named Target and the giant corporation demanded that they change their name - because it infringed their Trademark.   This little store had traded under the Target name for generations.

The court outcome was in favour of the little, family owned store and this set a precedent that could be decisive if this " Ugg " matter is to be resolved by court action.   Clearly, Ugg boots were made and sold in Australia many years ago and the term is a " Trademark " of this country. The archives reveal celebrities that include Pamela Anderson, David Beckham and Sarah Jessica Parker were photographed  revelling in this form of footwear.

Perhaps a good time to examine other iconic Australian terms that could suffer a similar fate and include them on a register of protected generic names !