Tag Archives: trademark

it’s hard to get rid of a foreign TM owner’s complaint at the motion to dismiss stage despite territoriality

Posted on September 4, 2026 by rtushnet

Honest Greens Barcelona, S.A.U. v. Poky’s LLC, 2026 WL 2593358, No. 4:24-cv-07023-JD (D.S.C. Sept. 2, 2026) Honest Greens operates restaurants in Spain and Portugal under the HONEST GREENS name and related marks; it owns registrations for HONEST GREENS in several … Continue reading →

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weak infringement case + bad litigation conduct = fee shift for anticompetitive suit over descriptive term

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

BBK Tobacco & Foods LLP v. Central Coast Agriculture Inc., No. CV-19-05216-PHX-MTL, 2026 WL 2445019 (D. Ariz. Aug. 20, 2026) Previously. Although BBK forced Central Coast to an (expensive) trial on its very weak infringement claims over the use of … Continue reading →

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use of (R) on goods for which mark is not registered might be literally false

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

Southern Marsh Collection, LLC v. Dixie Decoys, LLC, 2026 WL 2431220, No. 24-00905-BAJ-EWD (M.D. La. Aug. 19, 2026) This opinion deals only with defendant’s attempt to get claims against its allegedly false use of the ® symbol dismissed; it is … Continue reading →

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Private label brands show lack of exclusive use for Pedialyte’s trade dress claim, but bad social media use saves TM claim

Posted on August 27, 2026 by rtushnet

Abbott Laboratories v. Revitalyte LLC, 2026 WL 2374024, No. 23-1449 (DWF/DTS) (D. Minn. Apr. 30, 2026) The court here allows part of Abbott’s infringement claim to proceed, including against “compare to Pedialyte,” which I think is wrong, though Revitalyte did … Continue reading →

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“battery tender” isn’t generic for guess what, but keyword advertising is fine

Posted on August 14, 2026 by rtushnet

Deltona Transformer Corporation v. NOCO Company, — F.4th —-, 2026 WL 2236806, No. 24-13590 (11th Cir. Aug. 4, 2026) Competitors aren’t generally allowed the same freedom as consumers to “genericize” a term. Here, the 11th Circuit finds no error in … Continue reading →

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trademark claim proceeds with essentially no detail, despite trade dress failure

Posted on August 13, 2026 by rtushnet

Honest Company, Inc., v. Butterblu, LLC, 2026 WL 2211834, No. 2:26-cv-00019-WLH-MBK (C.D. Cal. Jul. 28, 2026) Honest sued former partner Butterblu for trademark infringement and related claims. Honest sells products in the diaper and wipes, skin and personal care, and … Continue reading →

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not with a bang, but with a whimper of whipped dogs? VIP prevails in Ninth Circuit

Posted on August 13, 2026 by rtushnet

VIP Prods., LLC v. Jack Daniel’s Properties, Inc., No. 25-2027 (9th Cir. Aug. 4, 2026) VIP prevailed on remand on the confusion claim but lost on dilution by tarnishment. The court of appeals reversed, holding that JDI didn’t show that … Continue reading →

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always plead a first use date: court struggles with famous foreign marks doctrine without it

Posted on August 11, 2026 by rtushnet

Teng v. Tao, No. 2:25-cv-05360-WLH-AJR, 2026 WL 2055494 (C.D. Cal. Jun. 5, 2026) Teng sued Tao for various trademark-related claims. Teng is allegedly the chairman of Plaintiff Heilongjiang Tang Huo Kung Fu Catering Co., a Chinese company that operates restaurant … Continue reading →

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IPSC Breakout Session 4, Design, Trademark & IP Boundaries

Posted on August 7, 2026 by rtushnet

Backdoor Trade Dress, Rachael Dickson Strange things are afoot at the PTO. Applications for line drawings of specific products. They are not configuration marks for the product design. They’re just design marks. In addition to the usual TM registration requirements, … Continue reading →

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IPSC Breakout Session 3 Trademark Confusion & Consumer Perception

Posted on August 7, 2026 by rtushnet

Trademark Confusion as a Matter of Law, Andrew Michaels Is infringement a proposition about the world, or about the law? Fact: an empirical predictive question about the world. Law: a normative judgment about whether there should be legal responsibility—is the … Continue reading →

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