Real Kungfu plans to take on Bruce Lee Enterprises in court

Chinese fast-food chain Real Kungfu, or Zhen Gong Fu in Chinese, said on Thursday that it will fight the accusations that it has used the image of late martial arts film star Bruce Lee as its logo without permission.

The chain is being sued by Bruce Lee Enterprises LLC, a California-based company run by Lee's daughter, Shannon Lee. The case was accepted by Shanghai No 2 Intermediate People's Court on Dec 5.

Ye Fang, the lawyer representing Bruce Lee Enterprise, told Chinese news website The Paper that her client is demanding that the fast-food chain immediately ceases usage of her father's image, makes a public clarification and pays 210 million yuan ($30 million) in compensation, plus 88,000 yuan generated by other legal procedures.

Real Kungfu, which is run by Guangzhou Real Kungfu Catering Management Co., Ltd, on Thursday issued a notice on Chinese social platform Sina Weibo saying that it will not be commenting on the pending case. The notice also pointed out that the company's series of trademarks were registered and approved by the China Trademark Office and have been in use for 15 years.

"There were disputes years ago over whether our trademarks infringe the rights of others, but no verdict was given by the authorities or courts. We feel confused by this lawsuit and are preparing to take this to court," it said.