Sunrise Jewelry Manufacturing Corp. v. Fred S.A.
United States Court of Appeals Federal Circuit
175 F.3d 1322 (1999)
Relevant factsFree
Fred S.A. (Fred) (defendant) registered a metallic nautical rope design as trade dress for clocks, watches, and jewelry, and the registration achieved incontestable status; Sunrise Jewelry Manufacturing (Sunrise) (plaintiff) petitioned the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) to cancel the registration as generic. The TTAB ruled that product designs and trade dress, being non-word marks, could never be found generic and refused to consider the challenge, and Sunrise appealed.
IssueFree
Whether the registration of any trademark, including product designs and trade dress, may be challenged on the basis of being a generic mark.