Toyota’s ‘Lexus’ Can Go to Shows, Court Decides

A federal appeals court today spared Toyota Motor Corp. from an embarrassing scramble to mask the nameplates on its new Lexus luxury cars premiering at a major auto show but said the Japanese auto maker cannot advertise the brand nationally until a trademark dispute is settled.

The bench ruling by the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York was announced as Toyota unveiled its Lexus line at the North American Auto Show in Detroit, where company officials had nervously wondered whether they would have to cover the names of the cars at their swank display booth.

The Lexus controversy stemmed from a lawsuit filed against Toyota by Mead Data Central Inc., which provides a computerized legal information retrieval service that uses the name Lexis.

Mead claims the words sound alike and will hurt the value of its brand name. The company won a lower court order barring Toyota from using Lexus, but the auto maker got a temporary reprieve from the appeals court last week.

The ruling today by appellate Judge Emilia Kearse extends the reprieve on a limited basis at least until Jan. 13, when the appellate court will hear arguments on the merits of the case by lawyers from both sides.

Kearse ruled that Toyota may continue to use the Lexus name at the auto show and at other expositions but cannot advertise the name nationally until the matter is settled.