The Supreme Court of Victoria in Australia has overturned a previous decision over rights to the apple trademark Pink Lady, which now means Apple and Pear Australia Limited (APAL) can continue licensing the brand on Chilean-grown fruit exported to North America or elsewhere. 

APAL owns and manages the brand in numerous territories worldwide and invests in the marketing and development of the Pink Lady brand internationally.

"The Court of Appeal has held and ordered that Pink Lady America has no right to use the Pink Lady trademarks registered in Chile,” APAL’s intellectual property manager Garry Langford said in a release.

"We are pleased that the judgment has confirmed APAL’s rights in Chile relating to the trademarks as this will be of benefit to all growers in Chile who export under licence from APAL."

The judgment confirms that APAL can continue to license the Pink Lady trademarks in Chile on Chilean-grown apples that meet Pink Lady brand quality standards. Pink Lady trademarks in Chile include a range of logos such as the Pink Lady flowing heart logo (pictured).

In the release, APAL said it defended the Pink Lady brand and its trademarks worldwide to help ensure customers who choose Pink Lady apples got only the best quality fruit and not counterfeit or sub-standard fruit.

This also provides revenue to support projects run for the benefit of Australian apple growers that APAL manages.

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