Ingresar
Bob Dylan whiskey entrepreneurship in trademark infringement dispute
By Ferraiuoli LLC
In August 17, 2018, Heaven's Door Whiskey was accused of trademark infringement and unfair competition by Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc., an American, private family-owned and operated distillery company founded in 1935 headquartered in Kentucky.
In a complaint filed in a United States District Court of Kentucky, the plaintiff seeks injunctive and monetary relief from Heaven's Door Whiskey for its violation of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1114(1) and Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a), using without authorization the mark Heaven’s Door in connection with the production, distribution, marketing, advertising, promotion, offering for sale, and sale of whiskey.
“Heaven Hill is the owner of the Heaven Hill trademark, and related trademarks incorporating the Heaven Hill mark, which it uses in connection with a wide range of alcoholic beverages, including, without limitation, whiskey, bourbon and other distilled spirits, along with retail store services, visitor centers, and a distillery. Heaven Hill, directly and through its predecessors, has used the mark Heaven Hill continuously in connection with the sale of whiskey since at least as early as 1937”, the plaintiff argues. “Approximately eighty years after Heaven Hill acquired protectable exclusive rights in its Heaven Hill mark, the defendant adopted and began using the infringing mark Heaven's Door in United States commerce without Heaven Hill’s authorization”.
According to the complaint, Bob Dylan’s trademark is confusingly similar to Heaven Hill’s mark in that they both share a dominant and distinctive element (Heaven) resulting in similarities between the visual appearance, sound, and consumer connotation of the marks.
Ferraiuoli LLC
Ferraiuoli LLC (FLLC) was founded in 2003 by the late Blas Ferraiuoli-Martínez, Eugenio Torres-Oyola and María Marchand-Sánchez. This group was then joined in 2004 by Fernando J. Rovira-Rullán, thus forming the founding core of FLLC. FLLC has grown exponentially since its founding from a law firm with three attorneys and a support staff of three to its current size of 54 attorneys with a support staff of 38. Also, FLLC has grown from initially being known as an intellectual property and corporate law boutique law firm to a multiservice law firm that handles most matters relevant to a business while continuing to earn praise for its leading intellectual property and corporate practices.
FLLC has been ranked as a leading law firm in Puerto Rico by the professional publication Chambers Latin America in intellectual property, corporate, bankruptcy, labor & employment, real estate, and tax law. Moreover, 17 FLLC partners have been ranked as leaders in their field by the same publication. 4 FLLC partners are ranked as leaders in Intellectual Property, no other firm has more than 2. This recognition in such a short period of time is a tribute to FLLC’s business model.
FLLC prides itself in doing its work faster and more cost-efficiently yet with the same quality as that of its main competitors. The founding name partners are available at all times to attend to client matters. Their work ethic sets the tone for the rest of the firm. FLLC’s founders’ goal has been steady from the outset: become one of the premier multiservice law firms in Puerto Rico.
