Does McIlhenny Company have exclusive rights to the trademark “TABASCO®” if “Tabasco” is the name of geographic and political regions in Mexico?
Yes. Federal statutes provide and federal courts have held that a geographically descriptive word can be protected as a trademark when that word has acquired a secondary meaning. “Tabasco” acquired a secondary meaning as a trademark as a result of the public’s association of “Tabasco” with a single manufacturer, McIlhenny Company. Since the early 20th Century, federal courts have held, and more recently affirmed, that McIlhenny Company is the exclusive owner of the Tabasco mark. In addition, courts have enjoined the infringing use by others attempting to trade on the goodwill of McIlhenny Company as symbolized by its Tabasco mark.
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