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US blocks Cuban trademark for Havana Club
A newly signed bill has banned the recognition of confiscated trademarks in Cuba, and settled a long-running dispute between Bacardi and Pernod Ricard.
On Sunday 1 December, president Joe Biden signed the ‘No Stolen Trademarks Honored in America Act of 2023’ into law, which blocks US courts and agencies from validating trademarks seized by Castro’s communist takeover of Cuba.
Bacardi, which holds the US rights to the brand, was banished from Cuba following the communist revolution, and claims that the Cuban government illegally seized the name and assets from José Arechabala SA in 1960. Production moved to Puerto Rico, and the brand was sold in the US from 1995.
The original Havana Club brand was handed over to state-run Cubaexport, with Pernod Ricard distributing the rum globally. Bacardi and Pernod Ricard are not named in the bill but have had a long-running legal dispute over the naming rights.
Following news on Monday that the law was signed, Cuba’s foreign minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla posted on X: “The so-called ‘Stolen Trademarks Act’ signed by Biden modifies the law into an aggressive measure against #Cuba, precisely with the purpose of opening up the door, in violation of international law, to the theft of Cuban trademarks that are legally registered in that country.”
Cubaexport first registered its trademark in the US in 1976. In recent years, decisions have been delivered on both sides of the debate, complicated by the trade embargo between the US and Cuba.
Pernod Ricard and Cubaexport retain the Havana Club trademark in the US until it expires in 2026. According to the drinks business, until then, the two entities are considering all options to safeguard their rights.
A statement from Pernod Ricard said: “Pernod Ricard expresses its disappointment over the recent enactment of this legislation, which calls into question its longstanding rights to the Havana Club trademark in the United States – a trademark that Pernod Ricard and its joint-venture partner, Cubaexport, have legitimately held since 1976.
“It is important to emphasise that this legislation does not immediately revoke the current rights to the Havana Club trademark in the United States, which will remain under the ownership of Cubaexport until their expiration in 2026. Until then, Pernod Ricard and Cubaexport are considering all their options to safeguard their rights.
“The Havana Club rum, produced in Cuba by Havana Club International, is the only 100% authentic and genuine Cuban rum distributed in over 125 countries around the world. Our joint venture holds uncontested rights to the Havana Club trademark in all those 125 countries.”
Bacardi has also commented on the development.
A spokesperson said: “Bacardi is pleased that Congress and the current administration strengthened the law which does not allow the Cuban government or others to profit in the United States from a trademark that was used in connection with a business or assets that were confiscated by the Cuban government.”
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