The U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in Dewberry Group v. Dewberry Engineers Inc. (23-900 (604 U.S. _____ (2025)), provides important guidance on corporate separateness, trademark enforcement and the scope of damages...more
Under the Lanham Act, a plaintiff who prevails on a trademark infringement claim may be entitled to recover the “defendant’s profits” as damages. The Supreme Court in Dewberry Group, Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc....more
Under federal trademark law, a winning trademark owner can seek a defendant’s profits from infringing use of the trademark. But just who is the “defendant” whose profits can be reached? Is it the corporate affiliate of the...more
On February 26, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a unanimous decision limiting the Lanham Act’s scope of damages in a trademark infringement action. The case involves a trademark dispute between two...more
On February 26, the U.S. Supreme Court in Dewberry Group, Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc. unanimously held that an award of “defendant’s profits” under the Lanham Act in a trademark infringement suit is only ascribable to the...more
Can a defendant’s affiliates’ profits be considered when awarding the “defendant’s” profits to the prevailing plaintiff in a trademark infringement suit under the Lanham Act, § 1117(a)? In Dewberry Group, Inc. v Dewberry...more
In a unanimous (and unsurprising) decision on Wednesday, the Supreme Court vacated an award of nearly $43 million in disgorged profits to a trademark infringement plaintiff because those profits were not attributable to the...more
The Supreme Court vacates a decision treating a company and its affiliates as "one and the same" for purposes of disgorging profits for trademark infringement under the Lanham Act, but leaves many questions unaddressed....more
The Supreme Court on February 26, 2025, overturned a nearly $43 million award granted in a decades long trademark dispute between two real estate companies. The unanimous ruling emphasized that under the Lanham Act section...more
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of the United States vacated and remanded a damages award for willful infringement under the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. § 1117(a)) in Dewberry Group Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc.,...more
On February 26, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of the petitioner in Dewberry Group Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc., holding that a disgorgement of “defendant’s profits” under the Lanham Act may...more
To plead, or not to plead. That is a question trademark infringement plaintiffs will need to carefully consider with their legal counsel when deciding which parties to name as defendants in a lawsuit and which legal arguments...more
On February 26, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously vacated a nearly $43 million award in a trademark dispute that raised the question of whether a defendant’s affiliates could be held liable for payment of a disgorged...more