Loch Ness visitor attraction takes rival to court over claims it poached visitors
The Telegraph:
By Auslan Cram, Scottish Correspondent
6:30AM BST 28 Jul 2011

A Highland feud between two rival Loch Ness Monster attractions has reared its head again despite an out-of-court settlement that should have ended the long-running row last summer.

The owner of one of the Nessie centres claimed yesterday that his rival had failed to abide by the terms of an out-of-court settlement.

The dispute once again centres on the names of the visitor centres, which are just 100 yards apart in the village of Drumnadrochit on the shores of Loch Ness.

Last year, the Official Loch Ness Exhibition Centre launched a civil action against the Original Loch Ness Monster Exhibition Centre.

Robbie Bremner, owner of the “official” attraction claimed his competitors Donald and Gillian Skinner were confusing tourists by using a similar name and had cost him pounds1.3million in lost profits since 1987.

After lengthy legal discussions the two parties agreed to change the names of their businesses.
The “official” centre was to become Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition, while its rival was to be renamed Nessieland Castle Monster Centre.

However, Mr Bremner is now planning to take the Skinners to court again after claiming they have not stuck to the terms of last year’s settlement by calling their business just Nessieland.

He said: “We decided on two specific names and everything had to fall into line, and that doesn’t seem to be happening. We have no choice but to go back to court since things don’t seem to be getting adhered to.” The civil action is due to be heard later this year.

Mr Skinner confirmed he had been served with a court summons just this week, but said he was happy to discuss the issue in a bid to settle out of court once more.

He admitted Mr Bremner was not happy, and said he intended to put the full agreed name on his signs but had been busy changing the old name on more than 500 internet sites.

He added: “It could still be amicably settled over a cup of coffee. I would like to meet him so we could come to an agreement without going down the legal route.”

Last year, Mr Bremner claimed the Skinners were “poaching visitors” by deliberately copying his business and alleged they had spent more than 20 years trying to drive people away from his business.

At some point during the long-running dispute the rivals added the words official and original to their attractions.

The case was settled out of court at the last minute after both sides had spent an estimated pounds10,000 on the dispute.

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