United States Ninth Circuit

Summary judgment and issuance of a permanent injunction in favor of plaintiff in a trademark infringement action is affirmed, where: 1) plaintiff's mark was unregistered, but the Lanham Act protects against infringement of unregistered marks; 2) plaintiff lacked the capacity to sue as a corporation but could bring suit in federal court as an unincorporated association to enforce a substantive federal right; 3) unincorporated associations have the capacity to own trademarks; and 4) the contested marks were protectable as descriptive marks that had acquired secondary meaning, and defendant's use of the marks was likely to cause confusion.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/11/2014
• Published 08/11/2014

Judges

• WOLF

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel