Competitive Keyword Ad Lawsuit Fails...Despite 236 Potentially Confused Customers--Lerner & Rowe v. Brown Engstrand

Competitive Keyword Ad Lawsuit Fails…Despite 236 Potentially Confused Customers–Lerner & Rowe v. Brown Engstrand

This case involves two rival personal injury law firms in Arizona, one of which engaged in competitive keyword advertising against the other. The court dismisses the lawsuit on summary judgment. The court focuses on the likelihood of consumer confusion. The…

More on Law Firms and Competitive Keyword Ads--Nicolet Law v. Bye, Goff

More on Law Firms and Competitive Keyword Ads–Nicolet Law v. Bye, Goff

This is another lawsuit between personal injury law firms over competitive keyword ads. The plaintiff is Nicolet Law, based in Hudson, Wisconsin with 14 offices in Wisconsin and Minnesota. The defendant is the Bye, Goff firm, based in River Falls,…

YouTube Defeats Trademark Lawsuit--Lops v. YouTube

YouTube Defeats Trademark Lawsuit–Lops v. YouTube

Leonel Lops claims a trademark in the term “Confidence Empire” for shoes. He alleges that YouTube sold items under the “Confidence Empire” brand and published videos from a dance troupe named Confidence Empire (maybe this one?). He sued YouTube for…

Consumers Don't Think Plant-Based "Milks" Are Cowmilk, But the FDA Wants More Disclosures Anyway

Consumers Don’t Think Plant-Based “Milks” Are Cowmilk, But the FDA Wants More Disclosures Anyway

“The issue is, what is milk?” The FDA uses the term “milk” to describe cowmilk [FN], but that isn’t a single commercial product from a nutritional standpoint–there are various versions of “milk” with different fat percentages, with lactose removed, and…

Section 230 Protects Services That Permit Anonymous Third-Party Posts--Bride v. Snap

Section 230 Protects Services That Permit Anonymous Third-Party Posts–Bride v. Snap

This case involves two “anonymous messaging” apps, Yolo and LMK. Both allegedly target teens audiences. “Plaintiffs allege they received harassing messages in response to their benign posts on Defendants’ applications and did not receive comparable messages on other platforms in…

2H 2022 Quick Links, Part 2 (Trademarks)

Trademark * Illinois’ Fair Food and Retail Delivery Act: “A third-party delivery service may not purchase or use the name, likeness, registered trademark, or intellectual property belonging to a merchant, and may not take or arrange for the pickup or…

Conflicting Terms of Service Provisions Undermine Arbitration Clause–Suski v. Coinbase

Coinbase launched “Dogecoin promotion” sweepstakes in 2021. Users sued Coinbase and its marketing agency, asserting claims under state law. Coinbase sought to send the case to arbitration, but there was a possible conflict in the governing TOSes. Coinbase’s standard terms…

2H 2022 Quick Links, Part 1 (Marketing, Privacy)

Marketing * FTC cracks down on live reads on the radio. * NY Times: Meta Agrees to Alter Ad Technology in Settlement With U.S. * Comcast v. Comptroller, No. C-02-cv-02-10509 (Md. Cir. Ct. Oct. 21, 2022). Court strikes down Maryland’s…

Got a Selfie With a Celebrity? Think Twice Before Using It In Ads--50 Cent v. Kogan

Got a Selfie With a Celebrity? Think Twice Before Using It In Ads–50 Cent v. Kogan

This is yet another blog post about 50 Cent a/k/a Curtis Jackson. This time, he “happened to be in the proximity” of the defendant’s cosmetic surgery clinic. Doing what, exactly? The opinion doesn’t say. While he was fortuitously in the…

Messaging App Isn't Liable for an Offline Murder (Even Without Section 230)--Roland v. Letgo

Messaging App Isn’t Liable for an Offline Murder (Even Without Section 230)–Roland v. Letgo

This is a tragic case involving the marketplace app Letgo. Using an alias, Brown listed a stolen car for sale on the app. The Rolands agreed to meet Brown in person to buy the car. At the meeting, Brown tried…