There can be only one chocolate bunny wrapped in gold foil, wearing a bow and a bell in Switzerland — and that’s the Lindt version.

So says a Swiss federal court’s ruling in favour of luxury chocolate maker Lindt & Sprüngli,  which had sued German discount retailer Lidl for copying its Easter treats.

The Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland ruled that Lidl's chocolate bunnies wrapped in aluminium foil, whether "golden or of another colour," were too similar to Lindt's.

It banned the chain's Swiss branches Lidl Schweiz and Lidl Schweiz DL from selling similar bunnies and ordered the destruction of any still in stock.

Lindt & Sprungli sued in 2018, claiming that Lidl's bunnies had a very similar shape and appearance and could be confused with its flagship Easter product.

But the commercial court of Switzerland's Aargau canton, west of Zurich, dismissed Lindt's action in 2021.

However, Switzerland's highest court overturned the decision, finding that Lidl's bunnies posed "a risk of confusion even if the two products present certain differences".

The federal court said that given the overall impression produced, Lidl's bunnies arouse obvious associations with the shape of Lindt's.

"In the public mind, they cannot be distinguished."

Lindt provided consumer surveys showing that its bunny had achieved a level of general public awareness.

The Federal Supreme Court decided that it "can be considered common knowledge that the shapes that Lindt & Sprungli has had protected by trademark law are associated by a very large part of the public with the Lindt & Sprungli company".

Lidl has been ordered by the court to stop selling its chocolate bunnies, and to dispose of any that have already been produced — although the court noted that the chocolate could also be melted down and used to create something else.

Daily Mail