Peabody Energy, by way of St. Louis law firm Senniger Powers, has sent a nastygram (PDF) demanding the takedown of an enviro-activist website that critically mimics the “Consortium for ‘Clean Coal’ Utilization,” of which Peabody is a part. Along with trademark infringement claims, the letter advances a congeries of other legal theories (defamation, tortious interference with contracts) and insists on the total removal of the site. [Citizen Media Law, EFF, Riverfront Times]
Posts Tagged ‘trademarks’
“South Butt” fires back against “North Face” trademark suit
The parodically named line of knockoff clothing isn’t going to go quietly. [Matt Straquadine/AmLaw Daily, Alkon, earlier]
Annals of sports trademarks
Two Chicago grocery store chains, Jewel and Dominick’s, bought full-page ads in “a special commemorative issue of Sports Illustrated magazine dedicated to [Michael] Jordan and his career”. The ads saluted the Chicago Bulls great for his achievements. Jordan proceeded to sue them for trademark infringement. [Chicago Breaking Sports, Tactical IP via Legal Satyricon]
Annals of trademark infringement
Clothing maker North Face sues humorous knock-off clothing maker South Butt. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Columbia Missourian, ABA Journal] Plus: Ann Althouse on the disclaimer that didn’t work as a lawsuit deflector.
“Will secret copyright treaty restrict your digital rights?”
Concerns about the pending Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) [Jeff Porten, MacWorld/MacUser] A contrary view: Ben Sheffner (via Ron Coleman).
November 3 roundup
- American Federation of Teachers backs off earlier aggressive trademark stance against critical website [AFT Exposed via Ron Coleman, earlier]
- Unintended but ever-so-predictable consequence of cash-for-clunkers: cheap used cars now a lot less cheap [Coyote]
- Strange that Pat Robertson doesn’t seem to know hate-crime laws cover crimes motivated by religious bias [Neiwert]
- Court rules against New York law firm’s debt collection practices [ABA Journal]
- Trouble amid the Lamborghinis: rumors swirl of financial defalcations at prominent south Florida law firm [WSJ Law Blog and more] Plus: Rothstein’s huge bipartisan political donations [DBR]
- Ohio: “Man dressed as a Breathalyzer for Halloween is arrested for DUI” [Obscure Store]
- Blawg star Mark Herrmann (Drug & Device Law) writes a brief in Supreme Court case on (unrelated) topic of prosecutorial immunity for misconduct [Scott Greenfield]
- Administration’s task force on medical liability reform meets amid signs it won’t accomplish much [Wood, ShopFloor; related, Stanley Goldfarb/Weekly Standard]
October 23 roundup
- Is it against the law to report police movements on Twitter? [Valetk, Law.com; Volokh]
- “Attorney Charged With Posting Ad Seeking ‘Secretary With Benefits'” [Legal Profession Blog via Bruce Carton, Legal Blog Watch]
- Maker of Monster energy drinks drops its cease and desist demand against Vermonster beer [Burlington Free Press, earlier] More: Turkewitz.
- Putative class action filed against University of Illinois over clout-in-admissions scandal; a contest challenges readers to come up with best arguments for dismissal [Russell Jackson]
- Settlement in case where wrongful suspicion of shoplifting/counterfeiting led to $3.1 million verdict against Target [Greenville News via Turkewitz, earlier]
- Things you can’t bring on the school bus: softball bats, canned vegetables [Free Range Kids and again]
- “Veil-Wearing Muslim Woman Drops Battle With Judge” [OnPoint News]
- Great moments in voting rights law: no, you can’t have nonpartisan elections [Washington Times] (& Popehat)
“Domain bullying”
Via David Post at Volokh, a nastygram sent by the American Federation of Teachers to the critical site AFTExposed.com. More: Ron Coleman, Likelihood of Confusion.
Trademark claims to silence critics?
Boston software maker Jenzabar has already sued the makers of a Tienanmen Square documentary on defamation theories, which a court dismissed. But it’s kept the litigation going on trademark infringement theories. [Paul Levy, Consumer Law & Policy; Ron Coleman, Likelihood of Confusion; Boston Globe June report linked earlier]
“Monster Energy vs. BevReview.com”
A product review site gets a takedown demand, apparently premised on its having run a picture of the product under review. Related at Consumerist (Vermont brewer Matt Nadeau targeted over “Vermonster” beer). It appears this is all unrelated to the widely publicized intellectual property assertions of the Monster Cable concern.