Posts Tagged: "Monster Energy"

Eleventh Circuit Upholds Sanctions in Energy Drink Dispute for Failure to Provide Computation of Damages

On Wednesday, August 3, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court’s ruling against Vital Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (VPX) in the form of sanctions for violating its discovery obligations in a trade dress dispute with Monster Energy Company. The Eleventh Circuit also denied Monster’s motion for sanctions in the form of attorney’s fees and double costs.

Clawing Deeper into the Monster v. Raptors Trademark Battle

Torontonians may have accepted the loss of Kawhi Leonard, but another Raptors asset is still at risk: their newest logo. As detailed here, the Raptors are tipping off against energy drink company, Monster, who allege the Raptors’ logo—featuring a clawed-up basketball—is confusingly similar to their own claw-mark logo. Since first filing their United States trademark opposition suit in 2015, Monster has continued their court battle against the Raptors for the last four years with no known resolution to date. Monster has a whopping 176 trademarks active in Canada at this time. Their most recognizable and widely used mark contains three jagged vertical gashes, resembling those from a claw, in the shape of the letter M. Since 2002, Monster has used the claw-like logo on everything from their beverage products, to event sponsorships, to clothing. The Raptors, on the other hand, have only been using their clawed-up basketball logo since 2014, when they underwent a brand redesign, and do not own a federal trademark registration for the rebranded mark in Canada.

Monster Energy Appeals to Ninth Circuit Following District Court Denial of Injunction Against ISN

In the most recent development in a case between energy drink brand Monster Energy Company and maker of automotive tools Integrated Supply Network, LLC (ISN), the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on July 2 denied Monster’s request for a permanent injunction against ISN. Monster appealed on July 3 to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and ISN cross-appealed on July 12. The district court found that Monster did not offer evidence demonstrating that ISN’s infringement had actually caused a loss of control over its business reputation leading to irreparable harm and loss of prospective customers. Additionally, the court reasoned that evidence regarding consumer confusion does not necessarily demonstrate irreparable harm. Even where ISN had not ceased infringing activity, Monster still had not proven irreparable harm as required to justify a permanent injunction, said the court.

Monster Energy Prevails on Trademark and Trade Dress Infringement Claims, Wins Punitive Damages

Energy drink maker Monster Energy recently prevailed in its trademark and trade dress infringement lawsuit against Integrated Supply Networks (ISN), a maker of automotive tools and related goods. Although the jury verdict awarded zero actual damages for infringement, it did award $5 million in punitive damages against ISN after Monster Energy proved that Integrated Supply acted with malice, oppression or fraud.