B.C. man sues Maxime Bernier's People's Party over trademark

An Abbotsford man has filed a lawsuit with Maxime Bernier’s People’s Party of Canada, claiming the newly formed party has infringed on a trademark he registered in September.

Satinder Singh Dhillon has filed a statement of claim with the Federal Court of Canada to “take back the name ‘People’s Party of Canada,'” according to a press release from Dhillon’s lawyer, Dean Davison of Davison Law Group out of Vancouver.

“The byelection underway in Burnaby is the first time the other party using our name has put forward a candidate, so it was critical we file for an injunction to show Mr. Bernier and anyone in his party that we are serious,” Dhillon said in a statement. “So far, they have ignored the cease-and-desist letter sent last month by our Chief Agent, Mr. [Emmet] Pierce.”

That, Dhillon said, has led him to file his claim against the party.

According to the federal government’s trademark registry, Satinder Dhillon of Abbotsford filed a trademark application for the name “People’s Party of Canada” on Sept. 14, 2018, the same day that Bernier publicly announced his new party.

Six days later, the trademark was formalized, according to the federal government website.

According to the registry, the “People’s Party of Canada” is trademarked under class 38 (telecommunications), which “includes mainly services allowing at least one person to communicate with another by sensory means.”

Dhillon also registered “People’s Party of Canada” as a copyright on Sept. 18, 2018, according to the federal government’s copyright registry. That registration claims the “People’s Party of Canada” name was first published on July 1, 2015.

In the news release, Dhillon claims he was quoted discussing the party name in a 2015 media story.

Dhillon also filed for a judicial review of Elections Canada’s chief elections officer’s decision to approve Bernier’s application to use the name People’s Party of Canada, stating that it is a copyright and trademark infringement.

“We have filed a very strong case today, asking the courts for an injunction against Mr. Bernier’s party using the name People’s Party of Canada based on the facts,” Davison said in a statement.

“Allowing the other party to use the name in the current byelection or any election would cause further damage to my clients, Mr. Satinder Dhillon and Mr. Emmet Pierce, and it would make it difficult for them to use the name in the future.”

In a brief email statement to The News, People’s Party of Canada spokesperson Martin Masse said the party is “confident that our party was registered in accordance with the rules and that these lawsuits have no legal basis.”

According to the news release pushed by Dhillon and Davison, Dhillon filed the “People’s Party of Canada” name with Elections Canada on Sept. 25, 2018, “weeks prior to Mr. Bernier.”

In order to formalize the name of the party, Elections Canada requires at least 250 people to confirm their support in print by mail or in person. Dhillon claims Bernier’s geographical proximity to the Elections Canada offices in Quebec gave him an advantage to filing his full paperwork.

He also claims that Elections Canada didn’t take into account a postal strike, which began in October, that could have delayed Dhillon’s filings.

“It is also significant that Mr. Bernier’s very public discussion of the party name during his application period concerned some of Mr. Dhillon’s supporters, who did not want to unintentionally sign up as a supporter of the other party. That further slowed Mr. Dhillon’s application and damaged his interests,” Davison said.

Maxime Bernier cut his former ties with the Conservative Party after losing to Andrew Scheer a vote to lead that party into this year’s election, later launching his own party.