Grumbling over a ‘crab’
View(s):World renowned sea food restaurant “Ministry of Crab” has filed action in the Commercial High Court against a restaurant under the name “Black Crab” over infringement of its trademark and unfair competition.
Ministry of Crab which was established by celebrated chef and restaurateur Darshan Munidasa, partnering with Sri Lankan cricketing legends Mahela Jayawardane and Kumar Sangakkara, found its well-known crab logo being copied by another restaurant known as the “Black Crab”, according to the court action.
The defendants are two individuals who had opened a restaurant under the name “Black Crab” using an identical logo with the similar colour scheme, of the plaintiff’s, “Ministry of Crab”. It used this logo on its Facebook page as well as at the entrance and inside its restaurant.
“The logo was so similar that it was thought by the public, that the defendants’ company was in some way affiliated to the plaintiff’s. The Ministry of Crab tried resolving the matter amicably by sending a cease and desist letter to the defendants bringing to their attention the similarity of the two logos and urged them to remove the logo from their business. Despite this the defendants continued to trade under the same logo,” the action said.
Based on the complaint, the High Court issued an enjoining order against the defendants till November 22, pending the hearing of the case.