Food & Beverage Litigation & Regulatory Update

Tag: intellectual property

  • Bob Marley’s Family Awarded $2.4 Million for Trademark Infringement

    The family of Bob Marley will receive more than $2.8 million in damages and unpaid royalties from Jammin Java Corp. in a trademark­-infringement suit. Fifty­Six Hope Rd. Music Ltd. v. Jammin Java, No. 16-­5810 (C.D. Cal., order entered May 30, 2017). The family’s companies, 56 Hope Road Music Ltd. and Hope Road Merchandising LLC, own…

  • Summary Judgments in Strawberry-Breeding Dispute Favor Both Sides

    A federal court has granted summary judgment on a majority of issues in a dispute between scientists and the University of California Davis centered on the intellectual ­property rights of two strawberry varieties. Cal. Berry Cultivars, Inc. v. Regents of U. of Cal., No. 16-­2477 (N.D. Cal., filed May 2, 2015). Two former UC Davis…

  • Ketchup Cap Maker Sues Kraft Heinz for Trade-Secret Misappropriation

    Kraft Heinz Foods faces a trade-­secret suit alleging it distributed documents containing confidential and proprietary drawings and specifications for plastic caps created by one of its long­-time vendors. AptarGroup, Inc. v. Kraft Heinz Foods Co., No. 17­521 (W.D. Pa., filed April 21, 2017). AptarGroup argues that Kraft distributed engineering and customer drawings providing detailed specifications…

  • Former UC Davis Employees Sue Strawberry-Breeding Program

    Two strawberry breeders formerly of the University of California, Davis have filed a lawsuit against the university targeting its strawberry-breeding program, which they argue is denying them the opportunity to license the breeds they helped cultivate. Cal. Berry Cultivars LLC v. Regents of U. of Cal., No. 16-2477 (N. Cal., removed to federal court May…

  • Viacom Pursues Alleged “Krusty Krab” Infringers

    Viacom International Inc. has filed a lawsuit against IJR Capital Investments alleging that a restaurant owned by the company infringes on Viacom’s intellectual property in the “SpongeBob SquarePants” franchise. Viacom Int’l Inc. v. IJR Capital Invs., No. 16-0257 (S.D. Tex., Houston Div., filed January 29, 2016). As the complaint explains, “The ‘Krusty Krab’ is owned by…

  • Bacardi Files FOIA Request for “Havana Club” Trademark Determination

    Bacardi Ltd. has reportedly filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking information on the renewal of a trademark registration for “Havana Club” granted to Empresa Cubana Exportadora de Alimentos y Productos Varios (“Cubaexport”), a Cuban government-owned entity. Cubaexport had filed for a renewal in 2006, but the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets…

  • Potato Trademark Dispute Centers on “Buttery Homestyle” Name

    Idahoan Foods LLC has filed a lawsuit against Basic American Inc. alleging the company’s line of potato products marketed under the name “Buttery Home-Style” infringes on Idahoan’s rights to “Buttery Homestyle,” its brand of potato products. Idahoan Foods LLC v. Basic Am. Inc., No. 16-0005 (D. Idaho, filed January 6, 2016). Idahoan’s trademark application to…

  • Soy Fiber Food Additive Too Obvious for Patent, Appeals Court Confirms

    The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has affirmed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board ruling that a method of enzymatic hydrolysis of soy fiber for use in creating food additives is not patentable because it would have been obvious in light of previous inventions. In re Urbanski, No. 15-1272 (Fed. Cir., order…