The High Court has reserved judgment on an application by Miss World Ltd and two Dublin businesswomen for an order to prevent a Limerick based company passing off any of its events as the Miss Ireland pageant.
Miss World Ltd and Dublin businesswomen Ms Margaret Humphries and Ms Andrea Roche, organisers of last year's Miss Ireland event which was won by Ms Rosanna Davison, who went on to win the Miss World title, sought the order pending the outcome of the legal proceedings.
Their action is against Miss Ireland Beauty Pageant Ltd, O'Connell Street, Limerick, and a director of that company, Mr Kieran Murray, Iona Drive, North Circular Road, Limerick. The hearing of the interlocutory application concluded yesterday before Miss Justice Laffoy and she said she would deliver judgment within two weeks.
The plaintiffs claim that a series of agreements under which the Miss World Organisation allowed the defendants to organise the Miss Ireland event came to an end in May 2002.
However, the defendants have pleaded that the Miss World Ltd organisation, which is headed by Julia Morley, does not have any exclusive rights to the Miss Ireland name.
They claimed there was no Miss Ireland trade mark. They said there was no evidence to suggest that the use of the Miss Ireland title was exclusively associated with the plaintiffs.
:quality(70)/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/irishtimes/7d6f4bef-80c2-4932-9cb4-a7164db31957.png)