The name of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar cannot be registered as a European Union trademark for goods or services in the bloc, a court has ruled.
On Wednesday, the EU General Court in Luxembourg ruled that the name is associated with “drug trafficking and narco-terrorism and with the crimes and suffering resulting” from them, and should not be given protection under intellectual property laws.
#EUGeneralCourt: The name Pablo Escobar cannot be registered as an #EUtrademark 👉 https://t.co/ATb3CgbPxg
— EU Court of Justice (@EUCourtPress) April 17, 2024
The court upheld the decision of the EU’s Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) that refused a trademark application by Escobar Inc in 2022.
Escobar Inc was founded in Puerto Rico by Pablo Escobar’s brother Roberto de Jesus Escobar Gaviria, who spent 12 years in prison for his role in his brother’s criminal organisation.
Pablo Escobar, one of the world’s most notorious outlaws, was killed in a rooftop shootout with police and soldiers in Medellin, Colombia, on December 2, 1993.
He led one of the world’s most powerful criminal organisations, the Medellin cartel, and made his fortune from smuggling cocaine to the United States and is said to be responsible for the deaths of thousands of people.
