Tag Archives: trademark

student social media use of school colors/logo not plausibly confusing

Posted on September 14, 2021 by rtushnet

Arizona Board of Regents v. Doe, 2021 WL 3684116, No. CV-20-01638-PHX-DWL (D. Ariz. Aug. 18, 2021) Doe, a real asshole (“deeply unsympathetic,” to use the court’s terms), advertised “ASU Covid Parties” on a similarly-named Instagram account and spewed a lot … Continue reading →

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Reading list: The Confusion Test in European Trade Mark Law

Posted on September 13, 2021 by rtushnet

Ilanah Fhima & Dev S. Gangjee, The Confusion Test in European Trade Mark Law (2019) A very helpful overview. From a US perspective, offers real insights into how a system of registration primacy differs from a system of use primacy. … Continue reading →

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IIC decision also says some things about false advertising: materiality may not be presumed from literal falsity

Posted on September 9, 2021 by rtushnet

Select Comfort Corp. v. Baxter; 996 F.3d 925 (8th Cir. 2021) You probably know that the court of appeals sent this case back for retrial on an initial interest confusion theory. I won’t say much about that, though I do … Continue reading →

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organic protein is generic, but trade dress comes to the rescue

Posted on September 8, 2021 by rtushnet

Orgain, Inc. v. Northern Innovations Holding Corp., 2021 WL 1321653, No. 8:18-cv-01253-JLS-ADS (C.D. Cal. Mar. 22, 2021) The parties compete in the market for nutritional supplements. Orgain alleged that defendants infringed its trade dress in selling a competing plant-based nutritional … Continue reading →

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lawyer doesn’t make use in commerce by negotiating for client

Posted on September 7, 2021 by rtushnet

Big Ligas, LLC v. Yu, 2021 WL 1518993, No. 20-23719-Civ-Scola (S.D. Fla. Apr. 16, 2021) Big Ligas is owned by three members equally: Daniel Echavarria, also known as Ovy; Christian Andres Salazar; and Paulo Londra. Ovy and Salazar are the … Continue reading →

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There’s no such thing as “leasing real estate in violation of the Lanham Act”

Posted on September 7, 2021 by rtushnet

Wakefern Food Corp. v. Marchese, 2021 WL 3783259, No. 2:20-cv-15949-WJM-MF (D.N.J. Aug. 26, 2021) Always something new in trademark! Wakefern, the largest retailer-owned supermarket coop in the US, sued Marchese for attempting “to lease commercial real estate in violation of … Continue reading →

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Amazon pulls further ahead of possible competitors in TM secondary liability wars

Posted on September 3, 2021 by rtushnet

Ohio State Univ. v. Redbubble, Inc., No. 19-3388 (6th Cir. Feb. 25, 2021) “Because Amazon’s marketplace operates as a neutral intermediary between consumers and third-party vendors, courts have typically not found it liable for trademark-infringing goods sold through its platform.” … Continue reading →

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Rogers test protects name of online news publication

Posted on September 2, 2021 by rtushnet

Punchbowl, Inc. v. AJ Press LLC, — F.Supp.3d —-, 2021 WL 3356848, No. 21-cv-03010-SVW-MAR (C.D. Cal. Jul. 16, 2021) This Rogers case about the name of an online publication involves a motion to dismiss that was converted to a motion … Continue reading →

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Robinhood’s newsletter isn’t commercial advertising

Posted on August 31, 2021 by rtushnet

Jackson v. Robinhood Markets, Inc., 2021 WL 2435307, No. 21-cv-02304-LB (N.D. Cal. Jun. 15, 2021) Jackson, known professionally as Ice Cube, sued after Robinhood used his image and a paraphrase of a line from his song “Check Yo Self” to … Continue reading →

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affiliation claim true when sent out to consumers can’t be false endorsement

Posted on August 26, 2021 by rtushnet

Klayman v. Judicial Watch, Inc., — F.4th —-, 2021 WL 3233953, No. 19-7105 (D.C. Cir. 2021) Larry Klayman founded and ran the conservative activist group Judicial Watch, but the relationship ended badly in 2003. “During the fifteen years of ensuing … Continue reading →

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