Maxi's v. Schedule A - Order On TRO
Maxi's v. Schedule A - Order On TRO
Maxi's v. Schedule A - Order On TRO
1. Background
The following factual background is taken from MCINC’s complaint
(Compl., ECF No. 1), Application (MCINC Appl., ECF No. 7), and supporting
evidentiary submissions and exhibits.
MCINC is a family-owned business that makes and sells high-quality
patented mugs and bowls developed by Max Ash, whose mission is to raise
awareness and support for otherwise bright and capable children in this
country who struggle with learning and attention issues. (J. Ash Decl. ¶¶ 7, 15,
ECF No. 7-1.)
MCINC is the exclusive licensee of all rights in and to different federally
registered trademark(s) in International Class 21 (collectively the “MCINC
Marks”), as shown in composite exhibit 1 to the complaint (Compl. Ex. 1, ECF
No. 1-1), including among them: THE MUG WITH A HOOP!, with Registration
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Nos. 6,869,541 and 4,948,336; THE MUG WITH A GLOVE!, with Registration
Nos. 6,869,540; THE SOCCER MUG WITH A GOAL!, with Registration Nos.
6,869,537 and 5,111,526; THE MUG WITH A GOALPOST!, with Registration
Nos. 6,869,539 and 5,111,525; MAX’IS CREATIONS M (Stylized/Design), with
Registration No. 5,011,855; MAX’IS CREATIONS, with Registration No.
5,020,853; and THE WORLD WOULD BE BETTER IF WE COULD PLAY WITH
OUR FOOD!, with Registration No. 4,992,727. (J. Ash Decl. ¶¶ 15–17, ECF No.
7-1.)
The 5,011,855 MAX’IS CREATIONS M (Stylized/Design), 5,020,853
MAX’IS CREATIONS, and 4,992,727 THE WORLD WOULD BE BETTER IF WE
COULD PLAY WITH OUR FOOD! Marks are incontestable. (Id. ¶ 18.) The
6,869,541 THE MUG WITH A HOOP!, 6,869,540 THE MUG WITH A GLOVE!,
6,869,537 THE SOCCER MUG WITH A GOAL! and 6,869,539 THE MUG WITH
A GOALPOST! Marks have acquired distinctiveness in whole based on five or
more year’s use, which was claimed and recognized with the United States
Patent and Trademark Office under Trademark Act Section 2(f), 15 U.S.C.
§ 1052(f). (Id. ¶ 19.)
MCINC makes and sells high-quality patented mugs and bowls under the
MCINC Marks. The MCINC Marks are used in connection with the manufacture
and distribution of MCINC’s high-quality mugs and bowls. (Id. ¶¶ 15, 20.)
MCINC advertises, markets, promotes, and sells its high-quality patented
mugs and bowls under the MCINC Marks using photographs that are protected
by copyright and registered with the Copyright Office (collectively the
“Copyrighted Photographs”). (Id. ¶ 41.) MCINC is the exclusive licensee of all
rights in and to the Copyrighted Photographs, including the exclusive right to
pursue acts of infringement worldwide and retain and recover all proceeds
thereof. (Id. ¶ 42.) MCINC’s licensed photographs are duly registered with the
Register of Copyrights as visual materials, namely VA 2-026-049 “Group of
Registration Photos, Max’is Creations 2015 Mugs, published Feb.15, 2015-
Jul.29, 2015; 14 photos,” and VA 2-026-058 “Group Registration photos, Max
Photos, published June 13, 2014; 2 photos.” True and correct copies of
Copyright Certificates of Registration and the photographs they apply to are
attached as composite exhibit 2 to the complaint (Compl. Ex. 2, ECF No. 1-2).
(J. Ash Decl. ¶¶ 41–43, ECF No. 7-1.)
MCINC’s mugs and bowls utility configuration and design features are
protected under different registered and valid utility and design patent(s) with
the United States Patent and Trademark Office (collectively the “MCINC
Patents”), including among them: 9,375,106, “BOWL/MUG WITH A FIGURINE
FOR PLAYING WITH FOOD”; D723,336, “MUG WITH BASKETBALL HOOP”;
D755,015, “MUG WITH BASEBALL GLOVE”; D760,546, “HOCKEY MUCG
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2. Legal Standard
To obtain a temporary restraining order, a party must demonstrate “(1) a
substantial likelihood of success on the merits; (2) that irreparable injury will
be suffered if the relief is not granted; (3) that the threatened injury outweighs
the harm the relief would inflict on the non-movant; and (4) that the entry of
the relief would serve the public interest.” Schiavo ex. rel Schindler v. Schiavo,
403 F.3d 1223, 1225–26 (11th Cir. 2005) (per curiam). Additionally, a court
may only issue a temporary restraining order without notice to the adverse
party or its attorney if:
3. Analysis
Based on the declarations submitted in support of MCINC’s Application,
the Court concludes that MCINC has a strong probability of proving at trial
that consumers are likely to be confused by the Defendants’ advertisement,
promotion, sale, offer for sale, or distribution of goods bearing or using
counterfeits, reproductions, or colorable imitations of one or more the MCINC
Marks, the Copyrighted Photographs, and the MCINC Patents, that the
products the Defendants are selling and promoting for sale are copies of
MCINC’s products that bear or use copies of the MCINC's intellectual property,
and that the infringement of the trademarks, copyrights, and patents will likely
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4. Conclusion
Accordingly, the Court, having considered the Application, and having
found good cause, order and adjudges that the Application (MCINC Appl.,
ECF No. 7) is granted, and a temporary restraining order is entered under the
terms set forth below.
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held by, or subject to access by, any Defendant, including, but not
limited to, any assets held by or on behalf of any Defendant;
(c) From copying, displaying, distributing, or creating
derivative works of MCINC’s Copyrighted Photographs; and
(d) From making, using, selling, importing and/or offering
to sell products that practice the MCINC Patents.
Each Defendant, its officers, directors, employees, agents,
subsidiaries, distributors, and all persons in active concert or
participation with any Defendant having notice of this order shall
immediately discontinue, until further order of this Court, the use of one
or more of the MCINC Marks, or any confusingly similar trademarks, the
Copyrighted Photographs, and the MCINC Patents, on or in connection
with all Internet based e-commerce stores owned and operated, or
controlled by them, including the Internet based e-commerce stores
operating under the Seller IDs. This order is limited to the Defendants’
listings using one or more of the MCINC Marks, or any confusingly
similar trademarks, the Copyrighted Photographs, and the MCINC
Patents, on or in connection with all Internet based e-commerce stores
owned and operated, or controlled by them, including the Internet based
e-commerce stores operating under the Seller IDs, and does not apply to
the Defendants’ entire e-commerce stores.
Each Defendant, its officers, directors, employees, agents,
subsidiaries, distributors, and all persons in active concert or
participation with any Defendant having notice of this order shall
immediately discontinue, until further order of this Court, the use of one
or more of the MCINC Marks, or any confusingly similar trademarks,
within domain name extensions, metatags or other markers within
website source code, from use on any webpage (including as the title of
any web page), from any advertising links to other websites, from search
engines’ databases or cache memory, and any other form of use of such
terms that are visible to a computer user or serves to direct computer
searches to Internet based e-commerce stores registered, owned, or
operated by any Defendant, including the Internet based e-commerce
stores operating under the Seller IDs.
Each Defendant shall not transfer ownership of the Seller
IDs during the pendency of this action, or until further order of the
Court.
Each Defendant shall continue to preserve copies of all
computer files relating to the use of any of the Seller IDs and shall take
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all steps necessary to retrieve computer files relating to the use of the
Seller IDs that may have been deleted before the entry of this order.
Upon receipt of notice of this order, the Defendants and all
financial institutions, payment processors, banks, escrow services,
money transmitters, or marketplace platforms, including but not limited
to, Alibaba.com Hong Kong Limited, which operates the AliExpress.com
platform (“AliExpress”), Zhejiang Ant Small and Micro Financial Services
Group Co., Ltd. (“Ant Financial Services”), AliPay (China) Internet
Technology Co. Ltd., Alipay.com Co., Ltd., and Alipay Singapore E-
Commerce Private Limited (collectively, “Alipay”), Amazon Payments, Inc.
(“Amazon”), Cloudflare.com (“Cloudflare”), Dunhuang Group which
operates the DHgate.com and DHPay.com platforms, Camel FinTech Inc,
ContextLogic, Inc., which operates the Wish.com website
(“ContextLogic”), PayPal, Inc. (“PayPal”), eBay, Inc. (“eBay”), Stripe, Inc.
and/or Stripe Payments Company (“Stripe”), Walmart.com (“Walmart”),
and their related companies and affiliates shall, to the extent not already
done, (i) immediately identify all financial accounts and/or sub-accounts,
associated with the Internet based e-commerce stores operating under
the Seller IDs, store numbers, infringing product numbers, and/or the e-
mail addresses identified on Schedule “A” to the Complaint, as well as
any other accounts of the same customer(s); (ii) identify all other
accounts which transfer funds into the same financial institution
account(s) or any of the other financial accounts subject to this order;
(iii) restrain the transfer of all funds, as opposed to ongoing account
activity, held or received for their benefit or to be transferred into their
respective financial accounts, and any other financial accounts tied
thereto; and (iv) immediately divert those restrained funds to a holding
account for the trust of the Court.
Upon receipt of notice of this order, the Defendants and all
financial institutions, payment processors, banks, escrow services,
money transmitters, or marketplace platforms receiving notice of this
order, including but not limited to, AliExpress, Ant Financial Services,
Alipay, Amazon, Cloudflare, Dunhuang Group which operates the
DHgate.com and DHpay.com platforms, Camel FinTech Inc,
ContextLogic, PayPal, eBay, Stripe, Walmart and their related companies
and affiliates, shall further, to the extent not already done, provide
MCINC’s counsel with all data that details: (i) an accounting of the total
funds restrained and identify the financial account(s) and sub-account(s)
which the restrained funds are related to; (ii) the account transactions
related to all funds transmitted into the financial account(s) and sub-
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account(s) which have been restrained; (iii) the historical sales for the
Defendants’ listings that are alleged to infringe MCINC’s trademarks,
copyrights and patents; and (iv) the true identities along with complete
contact information including email addresses of all Defendants.
No funds restrained by this order shall be transferred or
surrendered by any Defendant, financial institution, payment processor,
bank, escrow service, money transmitter, or marketplace website,
including but not limited to, AliExpress, Ant Financial Services, Alipay,
Amazon, Cloudflare, Dunhuang Group which operates the DHgate.com
and DHpay.com platforms, Camel FinTech Inc, ContextLogic, PayPal,
eBay, Stripe, Walmart, and their related companies and affiliates for any
purpose (other than pursuant to a chargeback made pursuant to their
security interest in the funds) without the express authorization of this
Court.
No Defendant whose funds are restrained by this order may
transfer said funds in possession of any financial institution, payment
processor, bank, escrow service, money transmitter, or marketplace
website, including but not limited to, AliExpress, Ant Financial Services,
Alipay, Amazon, Cloudflare, Dunhuang Group which operates the
DHgate.com and DHpay.com platforms, Camel FinTech Inc,
ContextLogic, PayPal, eBay, Stripe, Walmart, and their related companies
and affiliates restrained by this order to any other financial institution,
payment processor, bank, escrow service, money transmitter or
marketplace website without the express authorization of this Court.
Any Defendant or financial institution account holder
subject to this order may petition the Court to modify the asset restraint
set out in this order.
This order shall apply to the Seller IDs, associated e-
commerce stores and websites, and any other seller identification names,
e-commerce stores, websites, or financial accounts which are being used
by the Defendants for the purpose of counterfeiting the MCINC Marks
and/or unfairly competing with MCINC and/or copying the MCINC’s
Copyrighted Photographs and/or infringing the MCINC Patents.
This order shall remain in effect until the date for the
hearing on the motion for preliminary injunction set forth below, or until
such further dates as set by the Court or stipulated by the parties.
B. Bond to Be Posted
Pursuant to 15 U.S.C. § 1116(d)(5)(D), 17 U.S.C § 503 (a)(3)
and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(c), MCINC shall post a bond in the
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________________________________
Robert N. Scola, Jr.
United States District Judge
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