OUCH That must have hurt

Who has won in War of Roses?

A modern-day War of the Roses between two Yorkshire breweries has resulted in a costly score draw.
A High Court judge said both Samuel Smith’s, of Tadcaster, and Cropton Brewery, near Pickering, had become “entrenched’” in their dispute over whether Cropton could use a white rose design on two of its beers. Samuel Smith’s claimed this was an infringement of its registered trademark.
Mr Justice Arnold ruled that Cropton had infringed Samuel Smith’s trademark rights on labels for its Yorkshire Warrior beer – but not on those for its Yorkshire bitter. “I think the overall result is fairly characterised as a score draw,” he said.
The judge then criticised both companies – and the legal system itself – for taking their dispute so far. It ought to have been settled out of court much earlier, he said, but had grown out of all proportion to what was at stake. “One explanation for this is Yorkshire pride; but I fear the English legal system bears a measure of responsibility as well.”
We agree entirely. Both Yorkshire stubbornness and Yorkshire pride played their part in ensuring this storm in a beer mug escalated out of control. But our disputatious legal system, which so often encourages confrontation, didn’t help. The result is that both breweries face hefty legal bills – and for what? This whole case should have been settled over a pint long ago.