Mid-February 2022 Indiana Intellectual Property Litigation Update

15 Tuesday Feb 2022

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana, Southern District of Indiana, Trademark

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A very quiet month, with few updates and no interesting documents to share. A few lawsuits ended with a whimper and most had no action whatsoever. We’ll see if Intellectual Property litigators get back to business now that the snow is melting in Indiana.

Noble Roman’s, Inc. v. Gateway Triangle Corp. et al. (SD, filed 2/5/2021) – A final pretrial conference is scheduled for April 27, 2023 and a jury trial will commence on May 15, 2023.

Delta Faucet Company v. Iakovlev et al. (SD, filed 3/25/2021) – No update this month.

Sears Authorized Hometown Stores, LLC v. Lynn Retails, Inc. et al. (SD, filed 6/4/2021) – No update this month.

Noble Roman’s, Inc. v. AMI Stores Management, Inc. et al. (SD, filed 6/6/2021) – No update this month.

Phoenix Intangibles Holding Company et al. v. Virk Brothers, LLC et al. (ND, filed 7/9/2021) – No update this month. 

AWGI, LLC et al. v. CLD Trucking Co. d/b/a Atlas Moving Systems AMS (SD, filed 7/22/2021) – No update this month. 

RE/MAX, LLC et al. v. Dulin et al. (SD, filed 8/24/2021) – The parties’ deadline to amend pleadings or join additional parties has been extended to February 23, 2022. 

Forest River, Inc. v. inTech Trailers, Inc. (ND, filed 8/31/2021) – The parties are still in the process of selecting a mediator, with Defendant striking no later than February 15, 2022, and the Plaintiff striking no later than March 1, 2022.

Thomas v. ooShirts, Inc. et al. (SD, filed 9/24/2021) – No update this month.

Edutainment Live, LLC v. Video Game Palooza et al. (SD, filed 10/11/2021) – The parties held an initial pretrial conference on January 24, 2022. A telephone status conference is schedule on April 25, 2022.

Indiana University Health, Inc et al. v. Thomas A. Brady Sports Medicine Center, P.C. (SD, filed 11/1/2021) – A Notice of Voluntary Dismissal was filed on February 14, 2022.

Alcorn v. COTR, LLC (SD, filed 11/22/2021) – The Defendant filed an Answer on January 20, 2022. On February 8, the Court reported notice of a settlement and the Plaintiff was given thirty days to file a motion to dismiss.

Innovative Sports Management Inc. v. La Jalisco LLP (SD, filed 12/15/2021) – No update yet.

AWGI LLC et al. v. Doe (SD, filed 1/7/2022) – No update yet. 

Corson v. Vive Exterior Design, LLC et al. (SD, filed 1/17/2022) – Vive was served with the Complaint on February 9, 2022. No other updates.

Gabet et al. v. Amazon.com. Inc. et al. (ND, filed 1/20/2022) – The lawsuit was transferred to the Fort Wayne Division on January 28, 2022. No other updates.

Reid v. Stephenson (SD, filed 1/27/2022) – The Complaint was served on a Nolan Cooney on February 2, 2022.

January 2022 Updates

December 2021 Updates

Pacers’ Lance Stephenson sued for posting photographs of himself on Instagram Stories

28 Friday Jan 2022

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Social Media, Southern District of Indiana

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The plaintiff in this copyright lawsuit is a professional photographer who has taken several photographs of Indiana Pacers’ Lance Stephenson, including photographs of Stephenson winning the 2008 Public School Athletic League as a high-schooler with Abraham Lincoln High School in Coney Island, New York.

Stephenson allegedly posted several of the plaintiff’s photographs on his Instagram account, stephensonlance, without authorization from the plaintiff. Most of the postings were apparently posted in Stephenson’s “Instagram Stories,” which disappear after 24 hours.

Lance Stephenson isn’t the first public figure to be sued for posting unowned photos of themself on social media. Being the subject of a photograph does not grant you copyright ownership of that photograph. Copyright ownership is held by the photographer, who can thus control how the photograph is publicly displayed. These types of lawsuits are typically settled out-of-court, but obviously not in this instance, although the Complaint (below) makes no mention of attempted settlement negotiations. Nevertheless, settlement usually follows shortly after a complaint is filed, although usually at a higher settlement amount.

Stay tuned for updates.

Reid v. Stephenson

Case Number: 1:22-cv-00205-JRS-DLP
File Date: January 27, 2022
Plaintiff: Damion Reid
Plaintiff Counsel: Craig B. Sanders of Sanders Law Group
Defendant: Lance Stephenson
Cause: Direct Copyright Infringement
Court: Southern District of Indiana
Judge: James R. Sweeney II
Referred To: Doris L. Pryor

Complaint:

Ligonier Perfumery sues Amazon over Persistent Counterfeiting

21 Friday Jan 2022

Posted by in Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana, Trademark

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Update 1/28/22: The case has been transferred to the Fort Wayne division and assigned a new case number.

The Plaintiffs in this trademark lawsuit are a “seventy year old grandmother” and her corporation, Annie Oakley Enterprises, Inc, a Ligonier, Indiana-based company which manufactures and sells health and beauty products like perfumes, essential oils, and lotions (“Annie Oakley”).

Along with 50 John Does selling counterfeit products on the Amazon online marketplace, Annie Oakley is suing Amazon for trademark infringement, false designation, and unfair competition. Amazon is apparently the first and only U.S. company on the U.S. Trade Representative’s “Notorious Market List,” a list of the worst online markets based on counterfeit product sales, copyright piracy, and trademark infringement.

The Complaint (below) details a long history of Annie Oakley attempting to deal with counterfeit products sold on Amazon, with little or no recourse from Amazon. The inferior counterfeit products have resulted in numerous consumer complaints from customers not aware they were buying counterfeits.

This David v. Goliath story will be interesting to follow. Can a small-town Indiana grandmother force the world’s most valuable public company to seriously address recurring intellectual property violations? Or will Amazon simply see a lawsuit like this as a “cost of doing business” and continue to allow counterfeits in their marketplace? Stay tuned for updates.

Gabet et al. v. Amazon.com, Inc. et al.

Case Number: 1:22-cv-00035-HAB-SLC
File Date: January 20, 2022
Plaintiff: Renee Gabet, Annie Oakley Enterprises, Inc.
Plaintiff Counsel: Paul B. Overhauser of Overhauser Law Offices, LLC
Defendant: Amazon.com, Inc., John Does 1-50
Cause: Federal Trademark Infringement, False Designation of Origin, Unfair Competition
Court: Northern District of Indiana
Judge: Holly A. Brady
Referred To: Susan L. Collins

Complaint:

Fishers Landscape Design Company sued over Bocce Ball Court Photograph

18 Tuesday Jan 2022

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Southern District of Indiana

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Here’s yet another copyright lawsuit involving the unauthorized use of a photograph on a website.

The Defendant, Vive Exterior Design, is a landscape design company headquartered in Fishers, Indiana. Vive is alleged to have used the Plaintiff’s photograph of a bocce ball court in the portfolio section of its website, www.viveexterior.com. The Plaintiff first sought to recover a standard license fee for use of the photograph via an intellectual property management company called Image Rights. When Image Rights was unsuccessful, Plaintiff’s counsel became involved but apparently never received a response from Vive. As such, Vive now has a federal copyright lawsuit to defend.

Settlement is the most likely outcome, but perhaps Vive has a valid defense for using the Plaintiff’s photograph. Stay tuned for updates.

Corson v. Vive Exterior Design, LLC et al

Case Number: 1:22-cv-00127-RLY-MG
File Date: January 17, 2022
Plaintiff: Lisa Corson
Plaintiff Counsel: Mathew K. Higbee, Naomi M. Sarega of Higbee & Associates
Defendant: Vive Exterior Design, LLC, Does 1-10
Cause: Copyright Infringement
Court: Southern District of Indiana
Judge: Richard L. Young
Referred To: Mario Garcia

Complaint:

Mid-January 2022 Indiana Intellectual Property Litigation Update

14 Friday Jan 2022

Posted by in Copyright, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Northern District of Indiana, Southern District of Indiana, Trademark

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Happy New Year. The last month was quiet for trademark and copyright litigation in Indiana, with only two new filings and numerous deadline extensions. However, there were a few interesting filings in ongoing cases. Noble Roman’s has filed a lengthy Response and Reply. Delta continues to pursue a Default Judgment against an online counterfeiter that continues to operate. The Triple LLL trademark lawsuit was settled with a Consent Judgment. Read on below and stay tuned for updates.

Noble Roman’s, Inc. v. Gateway Triangle Corp. et al. (SD, filed 2/5/2021) – On January 6, 2022, Noble Roman’s filed its Response in Opposition to Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment and Reply in Support of Summary Judgment on Abuse of Process Counterclaim.

Delta Faucet Company v. Iakovlev et al. (SD, filed 3/25/2021) – On December 14, 2021, Delta submitted a Status Update regarding their Motion for Default Judgment. There is still no ruling.

Triple LLL Truck Repair, Inc. v. Triple LLL, Inc. et al. (ND, filed 4/26/2021) – The parties filed a Consent Judgment on December 17, 2021 and the lawsuit was dismissed on December 21, 2021.

Sears Authorized Hometown Stores, LLC v. Lynn Retails, Inc. et al. (SD, filed 6/4/2021) – The parties’ discovery deadline has been extended via joint motion until March 18, 2022.

Noble Roman’s, Inc. v. AMI Stores Management, Inc. et al. (SD, filed 6/6/2021) – The parties’ discovery deadlines have been extended via motion.

Phoenix Intangibles Holding Company et al. v. Virk Brothers, LLC et al. (ND, filed 7/9/2021) – No update this month.

AWGI, LLC et al. v. CLD Trucking Co. d/b/a Atlas Moving Systems AMS (SD, filed 7/22/2021) – No update this month.

RE/MAX, LLC et al. v. Dulin et al. (SD, filed 8/24/2021) – The Plaintiffs’ discovery deadline has been extended to February 9, 2022.

Forest River, Inc. v. inTech Trailers, Inc. (ND, filed 8/31/2021) – The parties now have a deadline of January 31, 2022 to name a mediator.

Thomas v. ooShirts, Inc. et al. (SD, filed 9/24/2021) – Notice of settlement was filed by the Court and the parties have until July 1, 2022 to file dismissal documents.

Edutainment Live, LLC v. Video Game Palooza et al. (SD, filed 10/11/2021) – The Defendants filed an Answer on January 3, 2022. Defendants are represented by J. Richard Moore of Bleeke Dillon Crandall, P.C.

Indiana University Health, Inc et al. v. Thomas A. Brady Sports Medicine Center, P.C. (SD, filed 11/1/2021) – No update this month.

Alcorn v. COTR, LLC (SD, filed 11/22/2021) – An Initial Pretrial Conference is scheduled on February 8, 2022.

Innovative Sports Management Inc. v. La Jalisco LLP (SD, filed 12/15/2021) – No update yet.

AWGI LLC et al. v. Doe (SD, filed 1/7/2022) – No update yet.

December 2021 Updates