Australian Trademarks Office nixes ‘McKosher’ trademark request

An Australian lawyer who claims he is of Scottish-Jewish descent fails in a bid to register the trademark “McKosher.”

Trademark applicant Mark Glaser has an office based in the northern New South Wales town of Maclean, which prides itself on being the Scottish capital of Australia and even boasts tartan telegraph poles.

Glaser claims to have had ancestors with surnames such as McKosher, Zimmerman and Rosenthal, the Australian Broadcast Company (ABC) reports.

Glaser reportedly wants to open “a Scottish and Jewish restaurant bearing the name McKosher,” leading to a trademark fight with fast food operator McDonald’s.

A hearing held last week in New South was told that the Jerusalem rabbinate is in negotiations with the international McDonald’s headquarters, requesting the use of the name “McKosher” for the chain’s kosher-certified branches in the city to avoid confusion with those that are not kosher.

— JTA