07/07/2008   MANILA, Philippines — You can’t order these shoes in Jollibee.Saying consumers were not likely to be confused by footwear with the “Jolilbee” mark, the Court of Appeals overturned its decision in 2007, which upheld the guilt and imprisonment of a businessman for violation of the intellectual property code.

The popular fast food snack house Jollibee sued Richard Chua for using a logo that looked very similar to the logo and bee head it used. Chua was sentenced to five years imprisonment last November.

But last June 23, responding to the motion for reconsideration filed by Chua, the appellate court ordered the shoe salesman freed, saying the Jollibee fast food chain, which sells hamburgers, fried chicken and other food items, could not claim that “Jolilbee” footwear was misleading its buyers.

Granting Chua’s plea, the court said ordinary buyers would not easily be misled into thinking that the “Jolilbee” footwear was the product of the ubiquitous Jollibee fast food chain.

According to the decision penned by Justice Lucenito Tagle, the products sold by Chua and by Jollibee were “totally unrelated and non-competing.”

Jollibee’s products were sold in its outlets, while Chua’s products could only be bought in supermarkets and in Juan Luna Footwear in Manila, it added.

The appellate court noted that the Intellectual Property Code stated that the right to exclusive use of a trademark was limited to the food or services for which the trademark was registered.

The issue, it said, should be studied in its entirety and in relation to the products to which they were attached.

It added that the purchaser was not a “completely unwary consumer” but an “ordinarily intelligent buyer.”

“Thus, we find the likelihood of deception or confusion on the part of the consuming public remote,” it said.

In its November 2007 ruling, the court noted that the “Jolilbee” mark and bee head logo on Chua’s footwear were almost identical to Jollibee fast food’s mark and logo. It supported Jollibee’s claim that the public might be deceived into thinking that the shoes and slippers were products of the fast food chain.

It also said the slight difference in spelling was “miniscule” and that the same font type and size was used. The use of the “Jolilbee” name on the footwear was apparently intended to capitalize on Jollibee Food Corporation’s goodwill and reputation, it had added.

Adapted from Philippines Daily Inquirer