A famed local dim sum restaurant, Lin Heung Tea House and Bakery which borrowed its name and trademark from a successful eatery in Guangzhou, is seeking a court injunction to prohibit the originating company, Liang Xiang Lou, from marketing its mooncakes in Hong Kong.

The two company names, one in Cantonese, the other in Mandarin, are identical in their written forms.

The local tea house claimed that its trademark had been violated when Liang Xiang Lou in Guangzhou started selling mooncakes in Hong Kong. The application asks the court to revoke all trademarks of its Guangzhou competitor throughout the food industry.

Lin Heung Tea House was established in 1918 in Hong Kong, after a local merchant saw the prosperity of the Guangzhou original, which had become one of the most popular tea houses in the Guangdong city with its specially flavored mooncakes. The business connection between the two restaurants virtually ended in 1949. The Guangzhou eatery was closed for almost two decades after that. It resumed full operation in 1984.

The more than 80-year-old local Cantonese dim sum restaurant pointed out in its submission to the court that Lin Heung Tea House has already established its reputation for over more than 80 years in Hong Kong. It has used the Lin Heung trademark on its mooncakes for decades.

The plaintiff claimed that at the mention of Lin Heung, people think of the Lin Heung Tea House on Wellington Street, Central, and even famous food critics consider the restaurant one of the oldest tea houses in the city.

The local restaurant said that prior to 1984, though the Guangzhou restaurant had also sold its mooncakes in the city, it had used the trademark of "Pearl River Mooncake". However, it has changed its trademark on the mooncakes being sold in the city into "Liang Xiang Mooncake", identical to the ones sold by the local Lin Heung Tea House.

The defendant, however, argued that the Lian Xiang trademark has been used by the mainland company since 1984 and questioned the local tea house's claim of the high standing of the brand. On the other hand, the Guangzhou eatery claimed that there was an agreement between the two restaurants that allows them to share the brand, therefore denying any dishonest or unauthorized use of the name.

It also explained that the current owner, Ngan Chuen-fai, marking the third generation of the Ngan family, signed a memorandum of understanding with Guangzhou Liang Xiang Lou in 2000.

Ngai, who testified in Court on Tuesday, said he didn't know the content of the agreement and was simply there to sign the paper in Guangzhou under his father, Ngan Tung-chun's, order.

The case will continue on Wednesday.

stushadow@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 09/19/2012 page1)