Agriculture Law Commons^™

What's In A Name?: Geographical Indicators, Legal Protection, And The Vulnerability Of Zinfandel, Stephen M. Jurca

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This note explores the issues countries face when one party allegedly takes unfair economic advantage of foreign competitors in an increasingly global market by broadly interpreting international product labeling laws in its favor. The United States' widespread use of the term "champagne" in its domestic sparkling wine industry is just one example of how "genericide"-the process by which a popular brand name becomes so commonly used that the term is no longer protected by intellectual property law-negatively affects trade relations and hampers economic growth. This note focuses on the dangers of genericide in the marketplace, most specifically, the international wine …