The Administrative Panel Division of the Patents and Designs Registry, Commercial Law Department, Abuja, has ordered Jigsimur Plus Nigeria Limited to change an industrial design registered in its name and desist from producing or selling products under the disputed “Jigsimur Label Bottle Design.”

The panel, in a ruling delivered on September 2, 2026, also directed the respondent to remove the name “JIGSIMUR” from Industrial Design Number NG/DS/NT/O/2025/4804.

It further ordered that Industrial Design Number NG/DS/NT/O/2025/5718, titled “Cleansimur Health Drink Label on Bottle Design,” should immediately proceed for registration.

The ruling followed a petition dated November 10, 2025, filed by Jigsimur SA Pty Ltd and Cleansimure International Ltd, challenging the registration of the disputed design by Jigsimur Plus.

Muoneke Paschal Oluchukwu represented the petitioners, while Chijioke Stanley Ezeli and George Ikoli & Okagbue represented the respondent. At a later stage, David Ajaba, holding the brief of Anthony George Ikoli, SAN, appeared for Jigsimur Plus.

The petitioners alleged that Jigsimur Plus was formerly an agent and sales representative of Jigsimur SA Pty Ltd, a South African producer of herbal health drinks, and therefore lacked authority to register the disputed design in Nigeria.

They alleged that after registering “JIGSIMURPLUS” as a trademark, the respondent proceeded to register the “Jigsimur Label Bottle Design” despite allegedly knowing that the design belonged to the petitioners.

According to the petitioners, the registration was made in bad faith and amounted to misrepresentation of proprietorship and a breach of intellectual property principles.

They tendered several documents, including an authorisation letter, evidence of prior use and publication of the Jigsimur design, a trademark certificate for “JIGSIMUR,” the disputed design registration and evidence of termination of the agency relationship.

In its response dated February 17, 2026, the respondent denied the allegations, describing them as false and unfounded. It maintained that it had been lawfully appointed as the Nigerian representative of Jigsimur SA Original Pty and that the design certificate issued to it complied with applicable statutory and administrative requirements.

The respondent also argued that the Registry had not been misled and that its registration enjoyed a presumption of regularity. It alleged that the petition was an attempt by the petitioners to benefit from its established goodwill and market presence and create confusion over their “Cleansimur” product.

At the April 14, 2026 hearing, conducted pursuant to Designs Rule 40 of the Patents and Designs Act, the panel noted that its Administrative Panel was a first-level alternative dispute resolution mechanism designed to facilitate amicable settlement and avoid prolonged litigation.

The petitioners maintained that they never authorised the respondent to register the disputed design, arguing that the agency relationship had been terminated on April 23, 2023. They also tendered email correspondence and bills of lading relating to consignments supplied to the respondent before the termination.

The respondent, however, relied on a power of attorney dated October 16, 2024, under which it claimed to have been appointed a representative of Jigsimur SA Original (PTY), and maintained that its design satisfied all registration requirements.

In its ruling, the panel found that Jigsimur Plus had been a former sales representative of the petitioner and was therefore a former agent in relation to the sale and distribution of the “JIGSIMUR” product in Nigeria.

The panel stressed that intellectual property protection and enforcement are territorial, noting that ownership or protection outside Nigeria could not, by itself, determine rights within Nigeria.

On bad faith, the panel said it examined the respective labels, bottle designs and trade dress and concluded that the respondent had adopted features of the petitioners’ product in a manner capable of causing consumer confusion.

It consequently held that Industrial Design Number NG/DS/NT/O/2025/4804 belonged to the petitioner and that the respondent’s registration was made in bad faith.

The panel ordered Jigsimur Plus to change the disputed label and bottle design, cease producing and selling products under the registration and remove the name “JIGSIMUR.”

It also ordered the “Cleansimur Health Drink Label on Bottle Design” to proceed immediately for registration.

The orders will become enforceable 30 calendar days after the ruling. The panel warned that failure to comply would empower the Registry to expunge the disputed design from the Register of Industrial Designs.