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Intellectual Property Law

Seattle Trademark Lawyer

Reports on trademark law developments from Seattle and beyond. Covers trademark infringement, dilution, cybersquatting, right to publicity, domain name disputes, and the like, with an emphasis on happenings in the Seattle area and Ninth Circuit.
By Michael Atkins

Post Frequency: 5.4/day

Last Entry: March 30, 2011 at 00:20:04

Plaintiffs File Right of Publicity Class Action Suit Against Corbis

Posted on August 27, 2009
Corbis Web site with licensable images of plaintiff Bonnie Pointer On Aug. 5, plaintiffs Anna Maria Alberghetti, Bonnie Pointer, and Judy Tenuta filed a class action lawsuit in the Central District of California against Seattle-based Corbis Corporation for allegedly making their images available for commercial purposes without their consent...

Counterfeiting in Seattle: Need a Logo on that Kate Spade Purse?

Posted on August 25, 2009
The Seattle PI today ran a story about counterfeiting in Seattle. It said local police and federal agents last year served search warrants on 10 homes and businesses in one case and seized $242,000 and 7,873 alleged fakes from seven suspects...

Court Finds "Custom RV Interiors" Trade Name Generic, So Not Protectable

Posted on August 24, 2009
We don’t get many state-court trade name decisions in Washington, and when we do, they don’t get as much attention as they should. Here’s one of them — from last year, unfortunately — that remained under the radar until last week when Westlaw picked it up...

Ninth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Jarritos' Trademark Infringement Claim

Posted on August 20, 2009
Mexican soda maker Jarritos, Inc., sued the owners of San Francisco’s Los Jarritos restaurant for trademark infringement. As STL readers may recall, the Northern District of California dismissed the plaintiff’s claims on summary judgment in 2007...

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It's "Plausible" that Right of Publicity Amendments Apply to Hendrix Case

Posted on August 19, 2009
Do last year’s amendments to Washington’s right of publicity statute affect the ongoing case between the Jimi Hendrix Estate’s licensing company and the seller of Jimi Hendrix artwork? Western District Judge Thomas Zilly concluded it’s “plausible...

Blawg Review #225

Posted on August 17, 2009
The Pike Place Market: STL’s Blawg tour starts here. (All photos by STL) Today is the 102nd anniversary of Seattle’s Pike Place Market. Opened on August 17, 1907, in response to public outcry over the price of onions, the Market has evolved into what some call the “soul” of Seattle and one of the world’s best public markets...

STL's Top-Five List of Trademark Cases Decided Since Last September

Posted on August 13, 2009
A colleague asked me for my top-five list of trademark cases decided since last September. Here’s my response: Rescuecom Corp. v. Google Inc., 562 F.3d 123 (2d Cir. 2009) (finding keyword sale of trademark constitutes “use” in commerce, vacating dismissal in favor of Google) Board of Supervisors for Louisiana State University Agricultural and Mechanical College v...

STL to Host Blawg Review on Monday -- So Please Send Me Your Links Soon!

Posted on August 12, 2009
I’m happy to report STL is hosting Blawg Review #225 on Aug. 17 — the 102nd anniversary of Seattle’s beloved Pike Place Market. I’m counting on my fellow blawggers to send me content to include in my inaugural review...

Is Nike Connected with FRS Energy Drinks? Its Logos Are

Posted on August 11, 2009
I assume Nike is on board with its shirts and jackets being featured in ads for FRS energy drinks. Not all FRS endorsers appear to wear Nike, but the two most prominent do — enough to suggest a connection exists. Or am reading too much into this?

NWA Claims Spokane Company's Use of "Northwest" Infringes Its Rights

Posted on August 10, 2009
Northwest Airlines, Inc. (now a subsidiary of Delta Airlines, Inc.), has challenged a Spokane, Wash.-based online travel guide’s use of GO NORTHWEST! as a trademark. The travel guide publisher, Go Northwest, LLC, obtained a federal registration for its mark last year, claiming it has used the mark in commerce since 1999...

Law.com Highlights Keyword Lawsuits Against Google

Posted on August 06, 2009
Law.com yesterday highlighted the keyword lawsuits against Google — and Google’s recent success in defending them. Blogger Eric Goldman thinks the suits may be ill-fated. “We’re starting to see some of these lawsuits crack,” he said...

USDA's Organic Labeling Requirements Function as a Solid Certification Mark

Posted on August 05, 2009
The SF Gate had a good article this weekend about the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program. The USDA ORGANIC seal functions as a certification mark, as only producers meeting the NOP’s specifications can use it in connection with their goods...

Ninth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Author's Claim of Trademark Infringement

Posted on August 03, 2009
Pro se plaintiff Cherie Phillips wrote a book titled “Wisdom Bible of God.” She claimed she has trademark rights in that title because it is arbitrary and inherently distinctive, and because it has acquired secondary meaning. In her complaint, filed in 2007 in the District of Hawaii, she alleged that defendant Mike Murdock’s book, “The Wisdom Bible,” infringes her trademark rights...

It's Too Hot to Talk About Trademark Law

Posted on July 30, 2009
It’s hot here. Seattle hit a record 103 degrees today. My wife and I went from air conditioned offices to an air conditioned movie theater to an air conditioned restaurant. Now we’re sweltering in our un-air conditioned hot house that we call home...

Western District Trademark Case Among Eight Nationwide Against Google

Posted on July 29, 2009
Eric Goldman reported a while back that a Western District case is one of eight currently pending against Google, Inc., for trademark infringement. In Soaring Helmet Corp. v. Bill Me, Inc., Soaring Helmet alleges that competing motorcycle helmet seller Bill Me, Inc...

Would Smith's Owner Have Had a Claim for Trade Dress Infringement?

Posted on July 27, 2009
It’s not going to turn into a lawsuit, but check out the photos below of Seattle’s Smith bar and Starbucks’ adjacent 15th Street Coffee & Tea, which opened on Friday. Smith owner Linda Derschang initially cried foul about Starbucks’ design, saying it copied the look-and-feel of her neighborhood pub...

No Peso's-Matador Redux; Seattle Bar Owner Says She's "Over" Copied Features

Posted on July 22, 2009
Seattle bar queen Linda Derschang called off her meeting with Starbucks over the features she believed the coffee company copied from her neighboring bar, “Smith.” (Previous STL post here.) “I feel already over it,” Ms. Derschang told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer...

Peso's-Matador Redux? Seattle Bar Claims Neighbor Copied Its Trade Dress

Posted on July 20, 2009
The owner of Capitol Hill’s Smith (left) claims Starbucks’ forthcoming shop next door unfairly mimics her bar’s look-and-feel.Photo credit: Joshua Trujillo / Seattle PI Capitol Hill bar maven Linda Derschang claims a neighboring Starbucks store that’s undergoing renovation has copied the look and feel of her Smith restaurant and bar...

Seattle Law Professor Takes on AT&T and the PTO's Registration of Signal Bar Design

Posted on July 15, 2009
UW School of Law Professor Sean O’Connor, guest blogging at Legal Satyricon, writes about AT&T’s trademark registration of the bars indicating cell phone signal strength (depicted left). “The bars are purely functional representations of the strength of cell service and a standardized one at that,” he writes...

Court Enters Judgment for Perfumer's Workshop Based on Fees Award

Posted on July 14, 2009
On July 13, the Western District entered judgment in favor of The Perfumer’s Workshop International, Ltd., against Sportsfragrance, Inc. As readers may recall, Sportsfragrance sued Perfumer’s for trademark infringement on claim that Perfumer’s use of ROCK & ROLL in connection with its perfumes infringes Sportsfragrance's ROCK ‘N ROLL mark in connection with perfumes...

Bainbridge Island Design Firm Claims Amazon.com Infringes Its Trademark

Posted on July 13, 2009
Seattle’s technology news blog TechFlash ran a story on Friday about a Bainbridge Island, Wash.-based design firm that claims Amazon.com is infringing its trademark. The dispute involves Web designer Geoffrey Daigle’s registration for WINDOW SHOPPING for “information services, namely, providing information on a wide variety of topics, namely news, weather, arts, counseling services, automobiles, childcare, consumer products, sports, travel, and entertainment, namely, movies, videos, and music via a global computer network...

Western District Holds Maker of Worm Composting Products in Contempt

Posted on July 09, 2009
As STL reported in November, the Western District found that defendants Providnet Co. Trust and Barry Russell likely infringed plaintiff Cascade Manufacturing Sales, Inc.’s trademark rights in WORM FACTORY in connection with the sale of worm composting bins, and imposed a preliminary injunction against them...

Western District Finds Use of Hendrix Name Fair But Use of Signature Infringing

Posted on July 08, 2009
Screen shot from defendants’ former Web site depicting Hendrix mark Defendants’ use of HENDRIX and JIMI HENDRIX was fair use of plaintiffs’ trademarks to describe the images depicted on their products, the Western District preliminarily found on July 2...

Ninth Circuit Adopts Standard for Recalls in Trademark Infringement Cases

Posted on July 06, 2009
On July 2, the Ninth Circuit decided that a district court must find a “substantial risk of danger to the public” or other special circumstances before entering a preliminary injunction requiring a product recall in a trademark case...

Gosling's Protects Its Rights in the "Dark 'n Stormy" Cocktail Name, NYT Reports

Posted on July 05, 2009
The creator of the Dark ‘n’ Stormy cocktail is taking care to ensure that every drink bearing its name is made with Gosling’s Black Seal rum and a splash of ginger beer, the NYT reports today. This is a rarity in the world of cocktails, where bartenders usually have free rein to imprint their own personality on a classic drink...

Do Counterfeiters Drive Auction Sales of Empty Wine Bottles?

Posted on July 01, 2009
The NYT’s Freakonomics blog today discusses the sale of empty wine bottles on eBay. It suggests that because the highest-priced empty bottles are the ones that fetch the highest prices when full, bidders may be motivated by the prospect of re-using them to sell counterfeit wine...

Court Enjoins Beauty School from Using Competitor's Marks in Signs and Ads

Posted on June 30, 2009
The Western District today found it was likely the plaintiff beauty school could establish at trial that the defendant beauty school took out ads in the Yellow Pages, posted signs on an office suite, and obtained business licenses using plaintiffs’ trademarks, constituting trademark infringement and a violation of the Washington Consumer Protection Act...

Court Strikes Unclean Hands Defense as Not Sufficiently Related to Claims

Posted on June 29, 2009
STL has previously reported on Campagnolo S.R.L. v. Full Speed Ahead, Inc., the Western District case involving the defendant bicycle parts manufacturer’s alleged statements about the qualities of the parties’ respective bicycle cranksets...

Allegation of Willful Infringement Enough for Attorney's Fees Award

Posted on June 24, 2009
Plaintiff Chevron U.S.A., Inc. alleged defendant In N Out Minimart on Broadway, Inc., willfully infringed its trademark. In N Out failed to answer, so the Western District ordered it to be in default. The first time around, the court denied Chevron’s motion for entry of default judgement with an award of fees and costs because Chevron did not set forth the basis for the award...

CUPCAKES Brand Cupcakes?

Posted on June 23, 2009
I wouldn’t call it a safari, but I did have the good fortune to spend the weekend in the great city of Vancouver, BC. While there, I came across this tasty example of a generic trademark: CUPCAKES brand cupcakes. I later learned the shop’s name actually is CUPCAKES BY HEATHER & LORI...

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