Court grants Travel Leaders Group right to use Travel Leaders name in Canada

In a major victory, Travel Leaders Group, LLC has won the right to use the Travel Leaders trademark in Canada, capping a six-year legal battle.

The Federal Court of Canada, in a decision handed down March 8, determined that the Travel Leaders trademark registration, owned by an Ontario numbered company since 2011, had been abandoned and should be canceled, according to a press release issued on Tuesday (May 9). 

As a result of the decision, Travel Leaders Group, a division of Internova Travel Group, has filed new applications in Canada for the Travel Leaders trademark and has a pending application for the Travel Leaders Network trademark.

However, out of an abundance of caution, Travel Leaders Group will not be adopting the trademark in Canada until the decision is final. The Ontario company has sought an extension of time to file an appeal but has failed to retain counsel and is unlikely to be allowed to proceed without counsel.

“We’re extremely gratified by the court’s decision,” said Roger E. Block, president, Travel Leaders Network. “This is a tremendous win for our company. Our brand is vitally important to us, and we’ve invested a great deal of time and energy defending it. We’ve already spoken to our Canadian members, and they’re excited to start using the full official Travel Leaders Network name.”

A further update will follow as soon as the appeal motion is resolved. Meanwhile, the ability to use the Travel Leaders brand name in Canada has been granted by the court in unequivocal terms.

Planning is underway to use the single Travel Leaders brand throughout North America in the future.

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