The local waste management and recycling industry may be on the verge of a major trademark ownership judicial row after Green.mt Limited filed a counter protest denying that it had breached trademark laws.

On 13 February, Der Grune Punkt Duales System Deutschland GmbH, the owner company of the GreenDot trademark, had filed a judicial protest against Green.mt Ltd, a non-profit waste management organisation set up by the Chamber for Small and Medium Enterprises – GRTU, for using a similar trademark.

GreenPak Ltd, which holds the rights to make use of the GreenDot trademark in Malta had filed a similar protest.

Green.mt Ltd said the dot in its name was a clear allusion to its website address and punctuation was not emphasised in its name. The organisation claimed that it was registered by the Malta Financial Services Authority and held a registered trademark issued by the Commerce Division, which omitted the dot, as punctuation cannot be included in a trademark.

Maltese law, said Green.mt Ltd, states that no trademark breaching trademark laws could be registered. It also added that the word “green” was often associated with environmentally-friendly initiatives such as recycling.