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Trunki firm loses Supreme Court case over design Trunki loses ride-on animal suitcase court case
(about 1 hour later)
A company that sells children's ride-on suitcases has lost a court battle with a rival over product design. The founder of Trunki suitcases has predicted "chaos" after his company lost a court battle with a rival over product design.
Magmatic - which sells Trunki suitcases decorated to look like animals or insects - said PMS International's Kiddee Case range infringed registered design rights. Magmatic - which sells the children's ride-on cases decorated to look like animals or insects - lost out in a Supreme Court ruling.
Five Supreme Court judges analysed the dispute at a hearing in November and have now ruled against Magmatic The court said PMS International's Kiddee Case range didn't infringe registered design rights.
Lawyers said the ruling will have "profound" design implications. Rob Law, creator and CEO of Trunki, tweeted he was "devastated".
The design battle had already gone through the High Court, which backed Bristol-based Magmatic, and the Court of Appeal, which backed Basildon's PMS International. He added he was "bewildered by this judgment, not just for ourselves but for the huge wave of uncertainty it brings to designers in Britain".
But in its ruling on Wednesday, the Supreme Court backed the Court of Appeal - a move experts described as a "massive blow to Trunki". The design battle had already gone through the High Court, which backed Bristol-based Magmatic, and the Court of Appeal, which supported PMS International.
Lawyer Mike Gardner, a partner at law firm Wedlake Bell, said the case showed how difficult it could be for businesses to protect their designs. In its ruling on Wednesday, the Supreme Court backed the Court of Appeal.
He said: "The court expressed sympathy with Magmatic that, in this case, it could not do anything to stop the sales of a product copied by a rival. Supreme Court Justice Lord Neuberger said Trunki was "both original and clever" and he said it "appears clear" the Kiddee Case had been conceived "as a result of seeing a Trunki and discovering that a discount model was not available".
"But design law did not protect ideas - it protected the appearance of products. " But he said: "Unfortunately for Magmatic, however, this appeal is not concerned with an idea or an invention, but with a design."
Drawings 'Overall impression'
Mr Gardner added: "Magmatic's registered design showed computer-aided drawings of the Trunki which included some shading and dark colours for the wheels. The court said design law was based on the "overall impression created by a design", which in Trunki's case was "an animal with horns".
"These had to be taken as part of the design and not ignored as Magmatic contended." It said this was "significantly different from the impression made by the Kiddee Case, which were either an insect with antennae or an animal with ears".
But Mr Law tweeted: "The law is meant to be about certainty. But this decision will create chaos and confusion among Britain's design community".
Dragons' Den
Magmatic registered its ride-on suitcase design in October 2003 as six computer-generated images.Magmatic registered its ride-on suitcase design in October 2003 as six computer-generated images.
Its founder Rob Law appeared on BBC Two television show Dragons' Den in 2006, unsuccessfully seeking investment for his Trunki case. In 2006 Mr Law appeared on BBC Two show Dragons' Den in 2006, unsuccessfully seeking investment for his Trunki case.
After he was rejected by the Dragons, he went on to sell more than two million of the suitcases in more than 60 countries.After he was rejected by the Dragons, he went on to sell more than two million of the suitcases in more than 60 countries.
Lawyer Mike Gardner, a partner at law firm Wedlake Bell, said the case showed how difficult it could be for businesses when design law protected the appearance of products rather than ideas.
He said: "Magmatic's registered design showed computer-aided drawings of the Trunki which included some shading and dark colours for the wheels.
"These had to be taken as part of the design and not ignored as Magmatic contended."
But Michael Moore, partner at intellectual property law firm Marks & Clerk, said judges had to "strike a balance between fair protection and free competition".