Trademark Lawsuit Against Online Sellers | Hallmark Infringement Action

Hallmark has filed yet another federal trademark infringement lawsuit! The brand most well known for its greeting cards is suing e-commerce sellers. Hallmark alleges that a significant amount of counterfeiting has occurred and they’re intent on recouping their losses. The collective actions of the sellers being sued in this action have led to the lawsuit, according to the Plaintiff. 

Rather than attempting to figure out how to best navigate this issue on your own, consider working with our attorneys at Stockman & Poropat, PLLC! In most instances, sellers who take a direct settlement route end up walking away with less than they should. Negotiating with a company like Hallmark is not the easiest thing in the world. There are several factors that inhibit the agency a given Defendant may have in that regard. And, our team really doesn’t want to see any affected seller give up any more of their earnings than they need to! 

Hallmark’s Allegations of Counterfeiting & Enforcement Evasion

In the following section, we’ll show you just what the allegations of intellectual property infringement look like! These excerpts come directly from the legal complaint, which you may download at the bottom of this page: 

E-commerce stores operating under the Seller Aliases often include content and images that make it very difficult for consumers to distinguish such stores from an authorized retailer. Hallmark has not licensed or authorized Defendants to use any of its HALLMARK Trademarks or copy or distribute the Hallmark Copyrighted Works, and none of the Defendants are authorized retailers of genuine Hallmark Products. 

Defendants, without any authorization or license from Hallmark, have knowingly and willfully used and continue to use the HALLMARK Trademarks and/or Hallmark Copyrighted Works in connection with the advertisement, distribution, offering for sale, and sale of Unauthorized Products into the United States and Illinois over the internet. 

On information and belief, Defendants have knowledge of Hallmark’s rights in the HALLMARK Trademarks, and are willfully infringing and intentionally using counterfeits of the HALLMARK Trademarks. Defendants’ willful, intentional, and unauthorized use of the HALLMARK Trademarks is likely to cause and is causing confusion, mistake, and deception as to the origin and quality of the Unauthorized Products among the general public. 

Stockman & Poropat, PLLC is Prepared to Help Your E-Commerce Business!

When you work with our firm, our superb lawyers and outstanding team will work with you to address all concerns and develop a great legal strategy. The latest Hallmark lawsuit isn’t insurmountable, especially when you have the right legal support! An infringement case like this could really deliver quite a blow to certain e-commerce operations. Lots of money may be affected by the lawsuit and your regular manner of operating will be disrupted. As such, you can rely on Stockman & Poropat, PLLC to get your online selling business back on track!  

You’ll want to handle this matter appropriately so that no further damage to your business is sustained. To start with, the Defendants should provide a timely response to the court, so as to avoid the court issuing a Default Judgment. Let’s say you didn’t respond at all, for whatever reason, that could lead to a DJ and the court may award a very substantial amount of your money to the Plaintiff. Not to mention, a judgment like that is typically final and irreversible. In order to protect your business, given the circumstances, you’ll need to respond to the court. 

Pressing on in a responsible manner is advisable, given that the financial backbone of your operation is going to be impacted. Hallmark will have the court approve of a temporary restraining order! This TRO will function to freeze the assets across all relevant seller accounts. So, the money that your business earned from selling Hallmark-branded products will be tied up. The Defendants won’t be able to access that money or withdraw it. The fact that your money is being frozen should be all the convincing you need to hire an attorney! Seeing as how Hallmark has taken legal action against you, why shouldn’t you respond with your own representation? 

Hallmark’s Intent to Stop Further Counterfeit Sales | Temporary Injunction

The money will be frozen in seller accounts until the Hallmark infringement action is resolved in some way. Stockman & Poropat, PLLC is prepared to do what we have to so that the outcome works, as best it can, in your favor! Getting blocked from accessing your funds is a major issue. For some sellers, such a reality can shift your operation over from functioning normally to the brink of bankruptcy. Regardless of how deep the wound, the latest Hallmark infringement action must be addressed so you don’t sustain irreparable damage. 

Part of the reason Hallmark is suing online sellers is because the Plaintiff identified a particular group as a network. The allegations are built upon the foundation of this claim. Hallmark intends to stop sellers from offering consumers any more additional infringing goods. To that end, the Plaintiff wants to have the temporary injunction in place. They claim that the actions of the network they’ve identified have resulted in major losses. And even with these claims remaining as allegations, the Defendants will be affected. To address the allegations and protect your money and business, give our team a shout! 

Contact our team at Stockman & Poropat, PLLC today for a free initial consultation! 

Download the legal complaint below:

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