High Court refuses BP appeal for colour green

In BP plc v Woolworths Limited [2007] HCATrans 249 (25 May 2007), the High Court of Australia has refused BP's application for special leave to appeal against the Full Court of the Federal Court's decision that BP's application for a trade mark over its colour green be refused.

Notwithstanding BP's successful registration of the colour green (more specifically  pantone 348C) in Benelux, France, New Zealand, Andorra, Azerbaijan, community trade mark in France, Germany, Guernsey, Indonesia, Jersey, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Turkmenistan, the UK, Hong Kong, Fiji, Malaysia, Mozambique, Philippines, Ukraine and the United States of America, the High Court was concerned about its use of green in conjunction with yellow.

BP's counsel's argued that "we are not claiming all use of the colour green.  We are only claiming that use of the colour green which is used as a trademark...It is not contended that their (Woolworth's) use of green would constitute an infringement of the mark", but the Court was more interested in a possible hearing of Cadbury's case in respect of purple.