Airlankan

2001. and Air Lanka Cargo Ltd, which discourages them from using the name'AIRLANKA', withdrawn their request for interim relief on 30 October.

The applicant, Sri Lankan Airlines, took the view in its claims that it was formerly known as Air Lanka Ltd. and is the trademark's registred proprietor, "AIRLANKA" and SriLankan has been known for 20 years and is still referred to as "Airlanka" and that the majority of the general and commercial communities still identifies the name "Airlanka" with SriLankan Airlines.

Sri Lankan carriers have indicated that Sri Lankan Airline has become aware since about January 2001 of the presence of a business called Air Lanka Travels Ltd. and have further declared that Air Lanka Travels Ltd. is engaged in engaging in improper commercial practices and/or acting in a manner that is contrary to Section 142 of the Code of Intellectual Property Act.

However, Air Lanka Travels Limited has declared in its SO that Sri Lanka Airlines misled the Tribunal and repressed a number of essential facts which, if known to the Tribunal, would never have agreed to the abovementioned order of remission against Airlanka Travels. a) SriLankan Airlines was conscious of the presence of Airlanka Travels before 1 January 2001 as two of its Sales Representatives were present at the opening of Airlanka Travels Ltd.

At the beginning of September 2000 Airlanka Travel even handed over a large pie with the inscription "Best Desires from SriLankan Airlines". A banking guaranty worth 3,000,000,000 was provided to Srilankan Airline by Air Lanka Travel in September 2000 to obtain lines of credits for direct trade with Sri Lankan carriers.

To attract agencies as direct marketing staff from SriLankan Airline, Airlanka Travels Ltd. has provided Srilankan Airline with a 21 September 2000 Brief, which includes the proportion of tickets sold on Srilankan Airline since Air Lanka Travels was established, and a 1 December 2000 Brief, which has been subscribed by SriLankan Airline's Marketing Manager Sri Lanka & Maldives.

De Silva Chandana, which will use Airlanka Travel as a temporary'A Direct Passenger Sales Agent' for a six-month term from 1 January 2001. Since its foundation, Airlanka Travel had been widely publicized in the press and was intensively promoted. Srilankan Airlines had issued over 350 million rupees to convert its name and brand from AIRLANKA to SRILANKAN AIRLINES and to abandon the use of the AIRLANKA name.

That' what Airlanka Travels said: Sri Lankan Airlines had been selling old objects with the name and logotype AIRLANKA. SriLankan Airlines' list and annual report showed that SriLankan Airlines had renamed itself from AIRLANKA to SRILANKAN AIRLINES and that SriLankan Airlines' managers had made great efforts to part with their former name (AIRLANKA).

In his report in the Annual Report 1999/2000, the CEO of Sri Lankan Air Lines explicitly referred to the'reintroduction of the Sri Lankan Airlines as Sri Lankan Airlines in line with our 1999/2000 Annual Report and the new corporate identity programme with a new name, stylised logotype and color scheme', etc., suggesting that they were aggressive in concentrating on their new name 'Sri Lankan Airlines' after giving up their previous name 'Air Lanka'.

At the time the two cases relating to the interim injunction applications of SriLankan Airways were investigated by the Colombo High Courts Judge, Mr. L. K. Wimalachandra, on 30 October 2001, Mr. Romesh De Silva P.C. notified the Tribunal that, after reviewing the defences of Airlanka Travels, the SriLankan Airline companies withdrew both interim injunction applications.

Requests were withdrew by Sri Lankan carriers without request in the given circumstance. Mr. Romesh de Silva P.C. with Palitha Kumarasinghe, led by Srimal Weerakkody, arrived for SriLankan Airways. Mr. S. L. Gunasekera with Dinal Phillips and Nilshantha Sirimanne, led by Samararatne Associates, joined Air Lanka Travels Limited and Air Lanka Cargo Limited.