In Patagonia, Inc. v. Labatt Brewing Company Limited, the Federal Court reviewed a decision of the Registrar regarding whether Labatt had submitted sufficient evidence of use of its “PATAGONIA” trademark under Section 45 of the Trademarks Act. A key issue was the cropped label of Patagonia beer submitted by Labatt.

Patagonia Inc. contested the Registrar’s acceptance of the cropped label, claiming that it could have left out crucial words or symbols that might influence how the public views the trademark, and suggesting that any such omission might have been intentional. However, the Court found this argument to be speculative and agreed with the Registrar’s view that the cropped label, coupled with other evidence such as sales receipts, was adequate to demonstrate use of the “PATAGONIA” mark by Labatt during the relevant period. The Court upheld the Registrar’s decision and dismissed Patagonia’s appeal.

Click here to read the full decision.