McDonald’s has lost a long-running legal battle with an Irish fast food rival over the Big Mac trademark.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) on Wednesday blocked the US restaurant giant from using the Big Mac brand for its chicken burgers.
The continent’s second highest court instead sided with Irish restaurant chain Supermac’s, which complained that McDonald’s had not made a genuine use of the name.
Pat McDonagh, managing director of Supermac’s, said the ruling represents a “significant victory for small businesses” across the world who stand up to global entities.
He said: “We knew when we took on this battle that it was a David versus Goliath scenario. The original objective of our application to cancel was to shine a light on the use of trademark bullying by this multinational to stifle competition.”
The ruling is the latest twist in the long-running trademark row between Supermac’s and McDonald’s.
McDonald’s registered the trademark for meat and chicken dishes served across the EU in 1996.
Supermac’s applied to revoke McDonald’s rights to the Big Mac trademark in 2017. In 2019, the EU Intellectual Property Office partially revoked McDonald’s registration and allowed the Galway-based rival to use the Big Mac name.
The trademark court still permitted McDonald’s to use the name for its meat and chicken sandwiches.
It prompted Supermac’s to appeal this decision, claiming that McDonald’s was using the trademark to block its expansion into the UK and Europe.
The European Court of Justice on Wednesday altered the court’s previous ruling and said McDonald’s should also lose the Big Mac trademark for its chicken products.
It said McDonald’s failed to show it had made a “genuine use” of the name for its products, or when opening restaurants and drive through outlets.
McDonald’s can appeal the latest ruling to Europe’s highest court, the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Commenting on the decision, Mr McDonagh said the ruling takes a “common-sense approach” to how global businesses use trademarks.
He accused McDonald’s of using “trademark bullying” for years, noting that the US giant trademarked SnackBox, the name of one of Supermac’s most popular items, despite not actually offering the product.
Mr McDonagh founded Supermac’s in 1978 after he was denied permission to build a pool hall.
The chain, which sells beef and chicken burgers, now has 100 restaurants across Ireland. It offers a double beef patty burger similar to the Big Mac called the Mighty Mac.
A McDonald’s spokesman said: “The decision by the EU General Court does not affect our right to use the ‘BIG MAC’ trademark. Our iconic Big Mac is loved by customers all across Europe, and we’re excited to continue to proudly serve local communities, as we have done for decades.”
