On January 15, 2025, Caprice Holdings Limited, a renowned operator of some of London’s most iconic and innovative restaurants, successfully obtained the expungement of a trademark under section 18 of the Trade-marks Act (TMA). The mark was held by West Georgia Lounge Holding Corp., a restaurant chain.

Caprice Holdings pursued this action on the basis of abandonment. An investigator’s thorough searches confirmed that the mark had not been used by its registered owner since at least 2021. The Federal Court found this absence of use sufficiently lengthy to establish both abandonment and intention to abandon the mark, resulting in its expungement.

The case also presented an interesting challenge regarding service. The trademark’s registered owner had been struck from the corporate registry. Gowling WLG navigated this issue by utilizing Rule 130(1)(c) and a provision of the British Columbia Business Corporations Act, which allows for service on a dissolved corporation’s directors. This approach was deemed effective and permitted the case to proceed unopposed.

Gowling WLG advised Caprice Holdings with a team that included Nelson Godfrey and Nicholas James.