Bunnies in the Courtroom

By Gordon Hopkins "The other day when I was walking through the woods, I saw a rabbit standing in front of a candle, making shadows of people on a tree." - Stephen Wright Let us speak of Easter Bunnies.Hang on you may be saying. What makes you think this is an appropriate topic for a column now? It's the first week of October, after all. It's the spooky month, Halloween and all that. Who cares about Easter Bunnies now?Fair question. I have learned of a recent court decision that I wish to bring to your attention. As a writer and an employee of a newspaper, I am, of course, a firm supporter of copyright protections. I had no idea such protections could apply to chocolate bunnies, but apparently, they do.The foil-wrapped rodents manufactured by the hilariously named Swiss chocolatier, Lindt & Spruengli, are iconic and instantly associated with the Easter holiday. So much so that the highest court in Switzerland recently ruled that said bunnies should be afforded the same copyright protections as Stephen King and Sidney Sheldon and Snooki. (Yes, Snooki wrote a book.)It seems a very similar foil-wrapped bunny was being sold by German retailer Lidl. (Shall I comment on the similarity of the names, Lidt and Lidl, or leave it up to the reader to notice?)Though not identical, the competing rabbits were similar enough that some consumers were getting the two confused, at least according to the court. As a result, the court ordered Lidl to stop selling their product.So far so good. Although I do not know if the similarity was deliberate or accidental, I think protecting the public from knock-offs is a good thing, whether it be fake Rolexes, designer handbags or chocolate Easter bunnies.The next part of the court's ruling, is another matter. Lidl was ordered to destroy its entire inventory of chocolate bunnies. I read that and almost burst into tears.There may be some good news, however. In the ruling, the court noted, “Destruction is proportionate, especially as it does not necessarily mean that the chocolate as such would have to be destroyed.”So the bunnies must go but the chocolate can stay.I have it in good authority that Lidl is looking to hire extra staff to bite the ears off all their bunnies so that they can re-brand then as chocolate hamsters.Where do I go to apply?

Russell Schroeder

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