Supreme Court protects the Donut brand and rules for Grupo Bimbo

The Tribunal Supremo has resolved one of the longest and most high-profile industrial-property disputes in Spain, ruling that commercial use of the term «dónut» constitutes an infringement of Grupo Bimbo's trade mark rights. The judgment, which comes after nine years of legal disputes, reinforces the protection of the registered Donut trade mark, one of the best known in the industrial pastry sector.

The ruling clarifies a key issue: although the word «dónut» is included in the dictionary of the Real Academia Española (RAE) as a generic term, its presence in common language does not legitimise its use for commercial purposes by third parties. In market contexts, its use remains reserved for its registered proprietor.

Grupo Bimbo has welcomed the decision as a historic legal victory, highlighting the importance of the ruling for the defence and protection of trade marks with established renown. With this judgment, the Supremo definitively closes a debate that has pitted the linguistic meaning of a term against the exclusive rights conferred by trade mark registration.

The decision sets a relevant precedent in Spain, especially in cases where words popularised by social use end up entering everyday language. The judgment will strengthen future claims by companies facing unauthorised commercial uses of their distinctive signs.