Overview
Leason Ellis client Interparfums Luxury Brands, Inc. sells a wide array of prestige fragrances including many under license from famous brands. Among them is the COACH DREAMS SUNSET fragrance sold under license through retailers including Amazon.com. Amazon was sued for trademark infringement in federal district court in Indiana by a company named Annie Oakley and its principal Renee Gabet, which asserted rights in various marks including SUNSET for fragrances. After Amazon notified Interparfums of the lawsuit, we filed a separate suit on behalf of our client against Oakley and Gabet in federal court in New York seeking a declaration of non-infringement. We successfully defeated a motion to transfer the case to Indiana, which led to a favorable settlement which included a release of the infringement claims. This outcome represented a complete victory and vindicated our strategy in aggressively filing a separate declaratory judgment action. |
