- Parties: The applicant was Honeybee Enterprises Ltd., dba Honeybee Centre. The respondent was Marks & Clerk. 

- Subject Matter: The Registrar of Trademarks issued a decision (2022 TMOB 267) expunging certain goods and services from the applicant’s trademark registration No. TMA728,046 for the trademark HONEYBEE CENTRE & Design under s. 45 of the Trademarks Act, 1985. The applicant appealed the decision’s finding concerning “creamed honey,” one of the goods deleted from the registration. On appeal, the applicant filed new evidence under s. 56(5) of the Trademarks Act, namely an affidavit stating that the applicant used the registered trademark in association with creamed honey during the relevant period. 

- Ruling: The court ruled in the applicant’s favour, allowed the appeal, and varied the Registrar’s Dec. 29, 2022 decision to maintain the good “creamed honey” on the list of goods and services for the trademark registration. The court held that the applicant provided clear evidence of the use of their registered trademark in association with creamed honey during the relevant period. Specifically, the evidence showed that the registered trademark was marked on the packages in which “creamed honey” was distributed at the time of transfer of property and showed possession of the good in the ordinary course of trade, the court explained. 

- Date: The hearing was set on Sept. 6, 2023. The court released its decision on Sept. 20, 2023. 

- Venue: This was a federal case before the Federal Court. 

- Amount: The court awarded the applicant costs.