Trademark Infringement Lawsuit Over Sale of Sunglasses
Have you been accused of trademark infringement in a lawsuit filed by Oakley, Luxottica, and Costa Del Mar? The claims made against the Defendants in this case pertain to counterfeit Ray-Ban, Oakley, and Costa trademarked sunglasses. A number of online sellers have been affected by this suit. Whether or not they have actually engaged in infringing behavior. As one of the Defendants, your operation has likely been disrupted by a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO). While this is serious and potentially costly, it is not a lost cause! We can help!
Online sellers based in China and other locations around the world have been accused of selling counterfeit sunglasses on several platforms. These marketplaces include eBay, Alibaba, Etsy, Temu, Wish.com, Walmart, AliExpress, DHgate, and Amazon. Any one of the Defendants named in the lawsuit may wish to reach a settlement with the Plaintiffs. Know that the majority of settlements in these types of infringement cases land at 60% of the money in your frozen seller account. The restraining order affecting your business means you’re prevented from accessing your money. Any amount leftover in your frozen account after a settlement will be automatically awarded to Oakley, Luxottica, and Costa Del Mar.
What Are Schedule A Lawsuits? | Oakley, Luxottica, and Costa Del Mar
What kind of lawsuit is this exactly? The specific name for this infringement lawsuit is Schedule A. The Northern District of Illinois has seen a dramatic increase in Schedule A cases over the last several years. Wondering why? It’s because massive companies worth millions or even billions of dollars have experienced an uptick in counterfeiting. When they file a Schedule A case, they are accusing a whole bunch of alleged infringers at once. That it, as opposed to individually. The result is that the companies can save a lot of time and money. The Defendants, meanwhile, are left to sort out their own legal issues that arise from the lawsuit itself.
Just as we have seen in many, many other Schedule A trademark infringement cases, the Plaintiffs are alleging that the Defendants are an active counterfeiting network. Perhaps some of the Defendants have infringed on Oakley, Luxottica, and Costa Del Mar trademarks without knowing it. Others, even though they were accused, may not have truly engaged in any infringement. Regardless, anyone listed as a Defendant will suffer the disruptive impact of the restraining order. Additionally, the responsibility is on the named sellers to resolve the legal roadblock in order to continue doing business as usual.
Should Sellers Respond to the Counterfeit Lawsuit?
We urge you to provide a response to the court! Turning your back on the lawsuit will only lead to taking a loss. We don’t want that! Neither do you! You’ve worked hard to earn your money by successfully selling products to consumers in the United States on e-commerce platforms. Not providing a response could mean that the court deems you liable to pay a Default Judgment. Before that happens, you can simply respond, attempt to resolve the issue around infringement, and then move forward with likely more money than you’d get from a 60% settlement.
Our team at Stockman & Poropat, PLLC has helped a wide range of online sellers get through this exact situation with the least possible amount of loss! Retaining legal counsel in response to these lawsuits is generally the best way to proceed. Oakley, Luxottica, and Costa Del Mar are anticipating that many of the Defendants will abandon the case, walk away, and leave the money in their frozen account. Guess what? If you do that, your money will go straight to the Plaintiffs, in full. And, that’s a totally avoidable outcome!
Why Big Brands File Schedule A Lawsuits…
In part, the Plaintiffs’ goal in filing this Schedule A lawsuit is to intimidate the Defendants. Sellers may not have the legal acumen, the funds, or the bandwidth as a business owner to take legal action. Unfortunately, for some of the Defendants, there’s no way around that. However, if you do have the desire, the money, and the determination to set things straight and maintain your hard-earned money, legal action is the most effective method to achieve resolution.
Stockman & Poropat, PLLC knows how to create legal solutions for online sellers accused of infringement. Your time and money is extremely valuable and we want to protect that. Becoming a victim to major brands by way of allegations is somewhat unfair. Contact us today for a free consultation! Once we understand the details of your e-commerce business, we can come up with a strategy that works for you.
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Up next we will be discussing the Monster Energy Trademark & Copyright Lawsuit.
