Spin Master Aims Trademark Infringement Suit at Sellers

The influential children’s entertainment company Spin Master has filed a trademark lawsuit in federal court. The infringement lawsuit is connected to the sale of the Plaintiff’s PAW Patrol products. This line of toys is targeted toward children and based on the Nickelodeon television series. The valuable trademarks in question are tied to PAW Patrol characters like Chase, Sky, Marshall, Rubble, Rocky, and more. 

To give readers a wider picture of the Spin Master IP lawsuit over PAW Patrol goods, we’ll share a few selections from the legal complaint: 

Spin Master has identified many fully interactive, e-commerce stores offering Unauthorized PAW Patrol Products on online marketplace platforms such as Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Temu, and PayPal including the e-commerce stores operating under the Seller Aliases. The Seller Aliases target consumers in this Judicial District and throughout the United States. 

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. Spin Master has not licensed or authorized Defendants to use any of the PAW PATROL Trademarks or copy the PAW Patrol Copyrighted Works, and none of the Defendants are authorized retailers of genuine PAW Patrol Products. 

Many Defendants also deceive unknowing consumers by using the PAW PATROL 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 websites relevant to consumer searches for PAW Patrol Products. Other e-commerce stores operating under the Seller Aliases omit using PAW PATROL 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 PAW Patrol Products. 

Respond to the Spin Master Trademark Infringement Lawsuit!

First off, online sellers impacted by the latest Spin Master lawsuit need to respond! Avoid the tricky and expensive pitfall of a Default Judgment by responding. You’ll likely not want to have much to do with a Default Judgment outcome. As it could mean additional penalties and more complicated long term issues. We’ll put it another way, too. Since Spin Master is suing sellers to recoup money lost due to counterfeit sales, the court could use a lack of response as a reason to award the Plaintiff your earnings. However you look at it, responding is the most sensible route! 

Let’s say the intensity of the PAW Patrol lawsuit may vary based on the amount of money in the affected online seller account. If the value of your e-commerce business and its revenue is within a modest range, this may not be all that terrifying. At the same time, if your online sales are generating thousands upon thousands of dollars, this could be deeply concerning. Stockman & Poropat, PLLC knows that an intellectual property lawsuit can harm small e-commerce operations. We’re here to protect you and your business! When a major company like Spin Master sues you, getting your own attorney is a must!  

Temporary Restraining Order: How Your E-Commerce Business Will Be Affected

As seen in numerous other Schedule A infringement lawsuits, this action will also involve a temporary restraining order. What the heck is that? It’s an injunction that’s approved by the court due to the allegations of counterfeit sales. Based on the claims made by the Plaintiff, the court will issue the restraining order to prevent further unauthorized sales. Spin Master alleges that the collective actions of the Defendants have resulted in significant damage. The Plaintiff states that the sellers’ “network” and its activity have damaged the brand’s reputation. A world-class company like Spin Master has a certain public image and reputation it would like to uphold. They claim that the Defendants are getting in the way of as much. And thus we have this trademark infringement action!

Because the lawsuit is designed in such a way as to sue multiple sellers at once, each seller should consider retaining an attorney. The only reasonable way to protect your e-commerce business from these trademark infringement allegations is by hiring your own lawyer! Perhaps you believe that you can negotiate directly with Spin Master. Which you may, but that move could likely result in a less-than-deserved resolution. See, the restraining order is going to freeze your online seller accounts. The money in those accounts will not be accessible until the allegations are addressed. Don’t let the Plaintiff take what may be rightfully yours, give Stockman & Poropat, PLLC a call! 

Stockman & Poropat, PLLC is the Law Firm for You

The aspect of the Spin Master allegations related to the notion of a counterfeit network is particularly important. The lawsuit is essentially predicated on the assertion that the Defendants, in some capacity, know and work with each other. It’s Spin Master’s aim to prove that the named sellers sold PAW Patrol products to consumers in the United States, knowing that they were counterfeit. According to Spin Master, in order to accomplish this task, the Defendants traded tips and knowledge and actively hid their true identities to avoid enforcement of the law. The latest Spin Master trademark infringement lawsuit over the sale of PAW Patrol products is no joke! 

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

Download the legal complaint below:

Up next, check out the newest instance of General Motors Suing Online Sellers Over Trademark Infringement.