NOTED local sports broadcaster and businessman Selwyn Melville, through his attorney Egon Embrack, has called on the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA), and its president David John-Williams, to “immediately instruct your foreign agents to formally discontinue all foreign prosecutions/ applications of the subject trademark and provide us with proof of same.”
This is regarding the use of the subject trademark Soca Warriors, which was allegedly coined by Melville in 1998.
According to a pre-action protocol letter which was issued to the TTFA and its president on Monday (a copy of which was obtained by Newsday yesterday), “we (the attorneys) became aware that the TTFA, in bad faith, had engaged foreign agents to apply for and prosecute the subject trademark Soca Warriors, both before the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the European Intellectual Property Office.”
The letter also made mention of the fact that, “in 2007, the Controller of the Trinidad and Tobago Intellectual Property Office (TTIPO) refused Trademark Applications Nos 36696 and 37173 in the names of Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation and our client, respectively under Section 14(3) of the Trade Marks Act until the rights of the Parties have been determined by the Court.”
Accusing the TTFA of acting in bad faith, “we (the attorneys) think it only prudent that the Parties take the one and proper course of action namely that our client, the originator of the mark, register the name and then arrange with the TTFA for use of the name by assignment or licensing agreement.”
The attorneys have given the TTFA 28 days to acknowledge receipt and respond to the pre-action protocol letter, or face legal proceedings.