43(B)log

MAY 22, 2023

May 17, 2023) The court grants these timeshare plaintiffs’ motion for a bench trial, ruling that the Seventh Amendment doesn’t guarantee a jury trial in a false advertising case where the plaintiffs seek only equitable remedies. Timeshare Lawyers P.A., 2023 WL 3510374, No. 20-24681-Civ-Scola (S.D. Hard Candy, Ltd.

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Law 59

43(B)log

FEBRUARY 16, 2024

30, 2024) (R&R) Recommendation: Dastar should block Qingdao’s Lanham Act false advertising counterclaims based on Lashify’s claim to be the originator of lash technology, but false patent marking counterclaims should survive. This isn’t a false statement of origin (but what about character or qualities?)

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Patent 59

43(B)log

JUNE 17, 2022

7, 2022) The court upheld a contempt finding based on an underlying false advertising claim. Also, a press release that discussed separate litigation in Italy about who owned VSL#3’s bacterial strains, unfairly compared VSL#3 and Visbiome referred to plaintiffs’ “aggressive efforts to sell their competing, generic probiotic product.”

False Advertising 64

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Litigation 64

43(B)log

AUGUST 11, 2021

Although in the copyright decision, the court made reference to “rather surprising oversights,” UpCodes corrected issues when notified by ICC. UpCodes, Inc., 2021 WL 1236106, Nos. 6261 (VM) & 20 Civ. 4316 (VM) (S.D.N.Y.

False Advertising 64

False Advertising Copying Advertising Advertising 64

43(B)log

SEPTEMBER 16, 2021

On GitHub, the landing page was called “ONgDB – Neo4j Enterprise Fork: Graphs for Everyone,” contained numerous references to Neo4j throughout, and was very similar to that of Neo4j EE. Summary judgment granted on state and federal false advertising claims. False designation of origin: Yep.

False Advertising 64

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Licensing 64

43(B)log

MAY 19, 2023

Roblox sued for copyright infringement, false advertising, trademark infringement, false association and false designation of origin, trade dress infringement, intentional interference with contractual relations, breach of contract, and false advertising and unfair competition under California law.

Copying 94

Copying False Advertising Social Media Advertising 94

43(B)log

DECEMBER 18, 2023

15, 2023) Simpson sued its competitor MiTek for using Simpson part numbers for structural connectors/fasteners for use in the construction industry in its catalogs/other promotional material; the court here, after a nonjury trial before the magistrate judge, rather comprehensively rejects its false advertising, trademark, and copyright claims. (It

False Advertising 64

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Copyright 64

43(B)log

JULY 8, 2024

2, 2024) Noriega alleged that Abbott’s PediaSure falsely advertised that it was “[c]linically proven to help kids grow.” Abbott Laboratories, F.Supp.3d 3d -, 2024 WL 402925, No. 4014 (PAE) (S.D.N.Y. The label also includes a cartoon giraffe next to, and exceeding the height of, a cartoon ruler.

False Advertising 49

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Publishing 49

43(B)log

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

Entrepreneur’s desire to bring forth a claim for false advertising against a competitor in a similar market is not unusual behavior.” Along with adding a defendant, Entrepreneur might eventually be allowed to add a false advertising claim, based on facts that were allegedly discovered only during Roach’s deposition.

False Advertising 45

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Contracts 45

43(B)log

SEPTEMBER 7, 2023

4, 2023) McCracken alleged that SlimFast food products were falsely advertised as “CLINICALLY PROVEN [ – ] LOSE WEIGHT & KEEP IT OFF” on the front of their packaging. McCracken v. KSF Acquisition Corp., 2023 WL 5667869, No. 5:22-cv-01666-SB-SHK (C.D. 50 Clinical studies prove the SlimFast Plan helps you effectively lose weight."

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Settlement 59

43(B)log

SEPTEMBER 10, 2021

AB allegedly began advertising for a similar product, claiming that its load bars have “30% more Holding Power than similar Disposable Load Bars,” allegedly an admitted reference to Logistick. 15, 2021) Logistick sells disposable load bars which are used to secure cargo freight during transport.

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Contracts 59

43(B)log

OCTOBER 9, 2023

million consent judgment, which defendants touted in a press release and advertised on Zinus’s website even after the court vacated the stipulated judgment. Courts have generally harmonized the Lanham Act with the Patent Act by requiring bad faith before claims about patent infringement can constitute false advertising.

False Advertising 104

False Advertising Patent Infringement Patent Advertising 104

43(B)log

OCTOBER 6, 2021

17, 2020) A lot of stuff here; I will ignore the non-false advertising related aspects of this mostly antitrust case. The court says the usual not-good things about false advertising’s relationship to antitrust, unfortunately: Deceptive speech usually doesn’t violate antitrust laws. 17-md-2785-DDC-TJJ (D.

False Advertising 45

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Marketing 45

IP Tech Blog

MARCH 6, 2023

JC Penny, for example, has been hit with a class action lawsuit in the Southern District of California over its alleged advertising practice of using “false reference pricing.” The products, Carranza claims , were never sold at the listed reference price as advertised. Do the claims have merit?

False Advertising 62

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Settlement 62

43(B)log

JUNE 30, 2022

28, 2022) The parties compete to provide online ordinations to individuals who wish to perform marriage ceremonies and accuse each other of misconduct in advertising. Lexmark , the court held, didn’t supersede the presumption of injury for false comparative advertising. C19-0301RAJ (W.D. Could ULC Monastery show cognizable harm?

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Business 59

43(B)log

JULY 24, 2023

But the FDA, independent reviews at scientific journals, and even some of Amgen’s own employees criticized the advertising claims as unsupported and misleading. According to Defendant’s internal memoranda, the advertising campaign was designed to “optimally position Onpro in [the] face of biosimilar competition.” Sandoz Inc.

False Advertising 92

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Marketing 92

Technology & Marketing Law Blog

OCTOBER 9, 2024

Fifteen years ago, courts generally avoided categorical pronouncements about the legitimacy of competitive keyword advertising. The message from the Second Circuit is plain: stop bringing competitive keyword advertising cases. This ruling doesn’t address the scenario where the advertiser’s ad copy references the trademark.

Advertising 98

Advertising Advertising Trademark False Advertising 98

43(B)log

MARCH 7, 2024

Shkipin’s amended false advertising counterclaim fails again. None of HomeLight’s statements allegedly disparaged or even referred to Shkipin’s business. These causation problems also defeated his state UCL claim.

Advertising 59

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Business 59

43(B)log

SEPTEMBER 21, 2021

References in Columbia’s marketing materials to “the on-campus experience” were often mere puffery “too vague to be enforced as a contract,” such as a statement in a University publication that “Columbia is an in-person kind of place.”

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Contracts Advertising Advertising 59

43(B)log

FEBRUARY 17, 2022

Was this commercial advertising or promotion? Elysium argued that Right of Assembly was “a marketing website for Tru Niagen for which ChromaDex pays commissions to Shelly Albaum for Tru Niagen customers referred through the website.” Thus, any false advertising claim would lie against Albaum, not [directly] against ChromaDex.

Advertising 80

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Marketing 80

43(B)log

JUNE 22, 2022

22, 2022) Held: A warranty is not “commercial advertising or promotion” under the Lanham Act. Plaintiffs sued for breach of contract under Tennessee common law and false advertising in violation of the Lanham Act. (OK, OK, I’m not a big false endorsement fan, but … isn’t this false endorsement? Securranty, Inc.,

Advertising 72

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Contracts 72

Technology & Marketing Law Blog

DECEMBER 9, 2022

Someone has referred you here because you’ve said something wrong about the laws related to web scraping in the United States. You’ve Been Referred Here Because You’re Wrong About The First Amendment.” The prior part explained the most recent ruling, a devastating but not unexpected loss for hiQ. Don’t worry! You’re not alone.

Blogging 131

Blogging Law Contracts Cease and Desist 131

Technology & Marketing Law Blog

JUNE 8, 2024

This case hit my alerts because of its discussion about keyword advertising, but first, I have to digest how the court got there. In 2014, the defendant launched a website called “The Texas Tamales Warehouse” but was driven off of that. ” That prompted this litigation. ” UGH.

Trademark 129

Trademark Advertising Advertising False Advertising 129

43(B)log

JANUARY 6, 2022

5, 2022) The court finds that, contrary to the district court’s holding, at least some of the underlying lawsuit’s allegations claimed that Vitamin Energy made disparaging statements about 5-hour Energy, thus triggering the insurer’s duty to defend under its “advertising injury” policy.

Advertising 72

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Intellectual Property 72

43(B)log

APRIL 26, 2023

Creager sells Montana post drivers (made in China) that compete with the Texas post drivers sold by IDT (advertised as made in the USA). The parties had other disputes, including accusing each other of posting false reviews of the other. The parties compete in the market for skid steer attachments and other products.

Fair Use 64

Fair Use Advertising Advertising False Advertising 64

43(B)log

OCTOBER 1, 2021

Kissler counterclaimed that these emails were commercial speech that violated the Lanham Act’s prohibition on false advertising and caused Kissler to suffer irreparable harm, including loss of business opportunities and harm to its reputation. Sending the complaint to twelve customers wasn’t “commercial advertising or promotion.”

Advertising 59

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Litigation 59

Technology & Marketing Law Blog

MAY 22, 2023

This case involves two rival personal injury law firms in Arizona, one of which engaged in competitive keyword advertising against the other. Each log entry includes the date of the call and the caller’s name, as well as a column labeled “[w]hat they said referred by.” The court dismisses the lawsuit on summary judgment. LoanStreet v.

Advertising 111

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Trademark 111

43(B)log

JANUARY 3, 2024

I’m only going to discuss the false association/false advertising bits; as to the latter, state law provides more protection than federal because of the “commercial advertising or promotion” requirement for Lanham Act false advertising. The false association/coordinate state law claims survived.

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Cease and Desist Advertising Advertising 59

LexBlog IP

MARCH 6, 2023

JC Penny, for example, has been hit with a class action lawsuit in the Southern District of California over its alleged advertising practice of using “false reference pricing.” The products, Carranza claims , were never sold at the listed reference price as advertised. Do the claims have merit?

False Advertising 52

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Settlement 52

43(B)log

MARCH 29, 2024

The asterisk following “dermatitis” referred to this statement: “*the most common allergy in infancy. 2) A print magazine advertisement described GSG as the “1st Formula with FDA qualified health claim.” (3) Although Gerber referred to the qualified health claim determination in its ads, it didn’t use any of the approved versions.

False Advertising 104

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Reporting 104

43(B)log

AUGUST 5, 2022

Lanham Act false advertising: Were the statements “commercial advertising or promotion” even though not in a conventional ad? GDI plausibly pled commercial speech: “The statements in question … reference the Kickstarter products that never were made and seemingly promote LFI’s new line of products with Morphe.

Advertising 59

Advertising Advertising False Advertising Contracts 59

43(B)log

DECEMBER 15, 2023

In Sybersound , the Ninth Circuit explained that the “nature, characteristics, and qualities” of the karaoke recording referred to things like the “quality of its audio and visual effects.” Such attributes would affect the consumer’s experience rather than the rights of third parties.”

False Advertising 45

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Intellectual Property 45

43(B)log

SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

The lawyer defendants allegedly interfered with the timeshare contracts by (1) participating in the marketing defendants’ false and misleading advertising; (2) encouraging or directing the nonpayment of fees owed to Diamond; and (3) keeping the owners in the dark regarding the adverse financial consequences resulting from the nonpayment of fees.

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Contracts 59

43(B)log

AUGUST 16, 2021

PTRA argued that, because Pasadena has referred to the Rose Bowl Game as “the game” in the past, the Rose Bowl Game was readily identifiable without using the term. This also got rid of the breach of contract claim, which was based on the alleged trademark infringement and false advertising.

Fair Use 94

Fair Use False Advertising Intellectual Property Ownership 94

43(B)log

JANUARY 27, 2023

24, 2023) WS sued Wayfair, alleging patent infringement, Lanham Act false advertising, Massachusetts and California statutory unfair competition and Massachusetts false advertising based on alleged copying of West Elm products. Wayfair moved to dismiss the false advertising and unfair competition claims.

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Design 59

43(B)log

AUGUST 25, 2021

This was allegedly still false and misleading, and First Databank allegedly falsely advertised that it “compile[s]” the relevant information in its database and for its coding determinations from the FDA and from manufacturers, such as Alfasigma. That was too extensive, so the claims all failed.

False Advertising 72

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Designs 72

43(B)log

JULY 29, 2024

23, 2024) Skillz sued its competitor in mobile gaming, Papaya, for violating federal and NY law against false advertising by falsely advertising that its games pit human players against each other when in fact Papaya uses bots masquerading as human players. Papaya Gaming, Ltd., 2024 WL 3526853, No. 24cvl646(DLC) (S.D.N.Y.

False Advertising 59

False Advertising Advertising Advertising Law 59