The day Donald Trump took on the Chinese government – and lost
Lawsuit by US president-elect failed last year after Beijing agency refused to grant him trademark to use his name in areas involving construction on mainland
No matter what course US president-elect Donald Trump takes with China, he starts out with at least one loss in his tangles with Beijing authorities.
Despite waging a long court battle, Trump failed to trademark his own name in the construction industry on the mainland.
A Liaoning construction firm unrelated to Trump’s businesses beat him to the punch in November 2006, trademarking the Trump name just two weeks before the US businessman filed his own application, according to a Beijing court ruling last year. The ruling was only recently published in an online court archive.
The Trademark Office of China’s State Administration of Industry and Commerce said itturned down Trump’s application because it closely resembled the trademark of the Liaoning firm in “construction and factory building”, which could provide similar services.
Trump applied to the office for a review of the ruling but the agency upheld its initial finding.
