CaseLaw
Uzokwe Vs. Dansy Ind. (2002) CLR 1(b) (SC)
Judgement delivered on January 18th 2002
Brief
Facts
The case of the Plaintiff from his pleadings and evidence at the court of trial is that he is the registered owner of design No. 4464 in respect of kitchen plastic container, that the design was registered on 5th March, 1991 in the name of "Sunday Innocent and Co.", that at the time of registration, the design was new and that he is the author. It was his case that he started producing the plastic containers shortly after registration of the design and within two months of registration he discovered that his right in the design had been infringed.
At the trial, the Plaintiff tendered Exhibit "1" which contains the plans and drawings of the registered design. He tendered as exhibit "2” the finished product from the registered design. It was part of his case that he started mass production of Exhibit "2" since 1991 and that at that time, there was no similar design or product in the market. Exhibit "5", the similar product produced and distributed by the defendants was tendered by the Plaintiff.
It was the case of the 1st defendant that the design as not new, that the Plaintiff was not the creator and that the product was common, available in the market and had been produced even before the registration of the Plaintiff's design. In his amended statement of defence, the 2nd defendant denied the newness of the said design and stated that the product had been in the market long before the registration of the design by the Plaintiff. It was the evidence of D.W. 1 that the Defendants had been producing plastic kitchen containers since 1987.
As stated earlier in this judgment, the court below reversed the judgment of the trial court and dismissed the claim of the Plaintiff hence this appeal.
Issues
Whether Exhibit 1 (i.e. the Appellant's design) was new at the time of its...