General Cigar Prevails over Cubatabaco in Trademark Dispute

General Cigar was recently vindicated by the courts again in the nearly 16 year old legal battle waged by Cubatabaco to determine rightful ownership of the Cohiba® trademark in the United States. After losing its legal battle in the Second Circuit, Cubatabaco continued to exhaust all available legal channels by bringing this matter before the United States Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”).

The TTAB granted General Cigar’s motion for summary judgment, and dismissed with prejudice Cubatabaco’s petition to cancel General Cigar’s Cohiba registrations. The TTAB ruled that because the federal courts have held that Cubatabaco may not sell Cohiba cigars in the U.S. or acquire any interest in the Cohiba mark, Cubatabaco lacks any property interest in the Cohiba mark. Cubatabaco therefore has no standing to challenge General Cigar’s registrations of the Cohiba mark.

General Cigar’s President Dan Carr said, “This ruling once again affirms what we have believed all along: That Cubatabaco has no merit in challenging General Cigar’s ownership of the Cohiba trademark in the United States.”

General Cigar received its first registration of the Cohiba trademark in the U.S. in 1981, and again in 1992. The company has sold its Dominican Cohiba cigar in the U.S. since the early 1980s.

True cigar connoisseurs recognize Dominican Cohiba cigars as one of the finest brands available in the U.S. market. Critically acclaimed for their meticulous construction and refined taste, the core brand of Cohiba cigars is complemented by these premium collections: Cohiba Black, Cohiba Puro Dominicana and Cohiba XV.

General Cigar Co. Inc., a division of Scandinavian Tobacco Group, manufactures and markets handcrafted cigars for the premium market. Committed to delivering cigars of the finest quality, General Cigar’s skilled artisans produce Macanudo®, Cohiba, Partagas®, La Gloria Cubana®, Punch®, CAO, Hoyo de Monterrey®, Excalibur® and several other leading premium brands in the company’s Dominican, Honduran and Nicaraguan factories. In addition, the company cultivates proprietary tobacco which is used exclusively in its blends. General Cigar also operates Club Macanudo®, a cigar bar in New York City. Based in Richmond, VA, General Cigar sells through tobacconists nationwide and also exports select products to 62 countries. For more information, please visit www.cigarworld.com.

® Cohiba, Macanudo, Partagas, La Gloria Cubana, Punch, Hoyo de Monterrey, Excalibur, and Club Macanudo are registered trademarks of General Cigar Company.