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WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Thursday ruled in favor of Jack Daniel’s against the maker of a dog chew toy that resembles the brewery’s famous bottle of whiskey.
In a 9-0 decision, the country’s highest court ruled against VIP Products, the manufacturer of “Bad SpaniardsA blatant chew toy, in a trademark dispute.
This case is about dog “Children’s toys and whiskey, two items rarely appear in the same sentence,” said Justice Elena Kagan in the opening sentence of the unanimous opinion.
The ‘Bad Spanish’ chew has the distinctive shape of the distillery’s square whiskey bottles, but it’s a label full of toilet humor.
While Tennessee whiskey is 40 percent alcohol, “Bad Spaniels,” for example, is allegedly made with “43 percent feces.”
Jack Daniel’s, which is owned by Brown-Forman Corp. The Kentucky-based company initiated legal action against VIP Products in 2014, when the dog toy appeared on the market.
After the initial court victory, Jack Daniel’s lost on appeal.
The Supreme Court disagreed with the appeals court’s ruling and said that the “bad Hispanic” chewing game did not deserve free speech protections under the First Amendment.
“It is not appropriate for the accused infringer to use a trademark to designate the source of his own goods—in other words, to use a trademark as a trademark,” Cagan books.
“This kind of use is at the heart of trademark law, and it does not receive special First Amendment protection.”
VIP, which also sells fake cans of “Canine Cola”, also claimed it should be protected behind the right to parody, which allows copyright infringement in the cultural sphere.
The Supreme Court rejected this argument as well.
“It is not considered non-commercial to use a mark simply because it imitates or comments on other people’s products,” Kagan wrote.
In a 9-0 decision, the country’s highest court ruled against VIP Products, the manufacturer of “Bad SpaniardsA blatant chew toy, in a trademark dispute.
This case is about dog “Children’s toys and whiskey, two items rarely appear in the same sentence,” said Justice Elena Kagan in the opening sentence of the unanimous opinion.
The ‘Bad Spanish’ chew has the distinctive shape of the distillery’s square whiskey bottles, but it’s a label full of toilet humor.
While Tennessee whiskey is 40 percent alcohol, “Bad Spaniels,” for example, is allegedly made with “43 percent feces.”
Jack Daniel’s, which is owned by Brown-Forman Corp. The Kentucky-based company initiated legal action against VIP Products in 2014, when the dog toy appeared on the market.
After the initial court victory, Jack Daniel’s lost on appeal.
The Supreme Court disagreed with the appeals court’s ruling and said that the “bad Hispanic” chewing game did not deserve free speech protections under the First Amendment.
“It is not appropriate for the accused infringer to use a trademark to designate the source of his own goods—in other words, to use a trademark as a trademark,” Cagan books.
“This kind of use is at the heart of trademark law, and it does not receive special First Amendment protection.”
VIP, which also sells fake cans of “Canine Cola”, also claimed it should be protected behind the right to parody, which allows copyright infringement in the cultural sphere.
The Supreme Court rejected this argument as well.
“It is not considered non-commercial to use a mark simply because it imitates or comments on other people’s products,” Kagan wrote.
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