Harley-Davidson Sues for Trademark Infringement
What have we here?! Another trademark infringement lawsuit filed in federal court against online sellers. This is the latest Harley-Davidson federal counterfeit lawsuit, to be exact. Now, it may be obvious, but the Defendants ought to acknowledge the gravity of the situation. The online sellers being sued by Harley-Davidson will be affected. Don’t try and ignore the lawsuit hoping it will go away on its own!
As of this date, Harley-Davidson has had the court approve a temporary restraining order. That means the sellers will not have access to the money generated from sales of Harley products. What’s the reason for the restraining order? The motorcycle giant believes that the actions of the sellers have cost them money. To pump the brakes on that alleged loss, they’ve filed for a temporary restraining order. While this bump in the e-commerce roadway may seem rough, you’re not without options. Primarily, the Defendants should reach out and retain an intellectual property attorney!
The level of damage caused by the restraining order will vary, depending on the seller’s business. Due to the allegations of trademark infringement, Harley-Davidson aims to freeze the Defendants’ seller accounts. The Plaintiff’s claims don’t automatically apply to every seller being sued. The accuracy of the allegations will also vary. None of what’s described in the lawsuit has been deemed proof. All of it has yet to be proven. That being said, the effect on the financial health of any given seller will depend. Overall, a restraining order is better to address and resolve sooner as opposed to later!
How Attorneys Can Help Online Sellers
What’s the basis for why sellers should seek the help of an attorney? For one, Harley-Davidson may try and settle with the sellers. Without a lawyer, you’ll risk entering into negotiation and reaching a settlement that isn’t fair or sensible. By and large, settlements between Defendants and Plaintiffs without an attorney result in sellers not walking away with their fair share. In order to preserve the integrity of your business, invest in an attorney and handle the lawsuit with them on your side.
Attorneys are good for multiple reasons, not just negotiations! Before you do anything, you’ll have to respond to the court. A lawyer can prepare that response for you and submit it so that it will be the most effective. In the case of sellers who need to prove who they really are, an attorney can certainly help on that front. And, to address any and all of the allegations you may wish to refute or challenge, you can also rely on your lawyer! The Harley-Davidson trademark lawsuit is a federal matter. It goes without saying, but if you’re being accused of unlawful conduct, you’ll benefit from experienced legal counsel.
Harley-Davidson is suing online sellers for trademark infringement because they want to protect their property. The overarching allegation is that the Defendants act as a network of counterfeiters. By communicating with one another and devising unlawful strategies for infringement, Harley-Davidson says this “network” has hurt the brand’s reputation. The intentional infringement on their marks has resulted in the lawsuit, says the Plaintiff. To get a better idea of the claims against the sellers, let’s read some of the language included in the legal complaint itself.
Harley-Davidson’s Claims of Trademark Infringement
Harley-Davidson alleges that sellers have engaged in the following:
Harley-Davidson has identified many fully interactive, e-commerce stores offering counterfeit Harley-Davidson Products on online marketplace platforms such as Amazon, eBay, AliExpress, Alibaba, Wish.com, Walmart, Etsy, Temu, and DHgate, including the e-commerce stores operating under the Seller Aliases.
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. Harley-Davidson has not licensed or authorized Defendants to use any of the HARLEY-DAVIDSON Trademarks and none of the Defendants are authorized retailers of genuine Harley-Davidson Products.
Defendants also deceive unknowing consumers by using the HARLEY- DAVIDSON Trademarks without authorization within the content, text, and/or meta tags of their e-commerce stores to attract various search engines crawling the Internet looking for e- commerce stores relevant to consumer searches for Harley-Davidson Products.
Other e- commerce stores operating under the Seller Aliases omit using HARLEY-DAVIDSON Trademarks in the item title to evade enforcement efforts while using strategic item titles and descriptions that will trigger their listings when consumers are searching for Harley-Davidson Products.
E-commerce store operators like Defendants maintain off-shore bank accounts and regularly move funds from their financial accounts to off-shore accounts outside the jurisdiction of this Court to avoid payment of any monetary judgment awarded to Harley-Davidson.
Know Your Rights and Your Legal Options
If you and your business are being impacted by the Harley-Davidson federal counterfeit lawsuit, you need to take action. Remember, this is a legitimate lawsuit that has resulted in you getting blocked from accessing your seller accounts. The amount of money in your frozen account could very well be substantial. Don’t forfeit your money without first engaging in legal action of your own. Sellers can use intellectual property attorneys to respond, negotiate, and resolve the matter.
Contact our team at Stockman & Poropat, PLLC today for a free consultation!
Download the legal complaint below:
Up next we’ll be discussing the Toyota Lawsuit Against Online Sellers.
