Trademark and Unfair Competition Litigation

In today’s increasingly competitive business environment, companies need to have strategic plans in place to protect and enforce their brands. Snell & Wilmer’s trademark and unfair competition litigators help clients protect and leverage their trademark rights, defend against the infringement claims of others, work to establish and maintain competitive marketplace position and, ultimately, provide value to owners/investors. Representing large corporations, small businesses and individuals, our attorneys have an extensive knowledge of our clients’ businesses, issues and objectives, along with significant experience litigating a wide variety of trademark-related matters.

While each client’s decision whether to press forward to trial depends on client- and matter-specific considerations, we have found that our clients are best served by attorneys who stand ready, willing and able to take a case to trial if necessary.

Our attorneys represent clients in litigation matters arising from the selection, protection and enforcement of company and brand names, slogans and trade dress for U.S. and worldwide markets. Our litigators represent clients in pursuing and defending claims of trademark and trade dress infringement, dilution, counterfeiting, cybersquatting, false endorsement, deceptive advertising and other unfair competition claims.

We represent clients in the federal courts (including the Federal Circuit and various federal district courts) and state courts, as well as before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. A number of our cases have involved enforcement actions relating to counterfeit or knock-off products. We also have served as adjunct law school faculty teaching trademark and unfair competition law.

Our team has taken clients through mediation and arbitration, as well as the temporary restraining order/preliminary injunction hearing process, dismissal proceedings, summary judgment, trial and appeals. We also are experienced with trademark opposition and cancellation proceedings, and Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy proceedings.

Examples of our capabilities include:

Cease and Desist Letters and Trademark Agreements 

• Settlement agreements
• Consent agreements
• Co-existence agreements
• Phase-out agreements

USPTO

• Trademark watch service implementation to help ensure competitors are not registering infringing marks
• Preparing letters of protest to third-party applications

Trademark Trial and Appeal Board – Our team has served as lead counsel in more than 1,000 proceedings in the TTAB, and through our extensive foreign network we are able to guide clients through similar proceedings abroad.

• Opposition proceedings
• Cancellation proceedings
• Concurrent use proceedings

UDRP Proceedings – Our team has filed hundreds of UDRP proceedings to retrieve our client’s domain names from cybersquatters.

Federal District Court and Appellate Court Litigation – Businesses may need aggressive, knowledgeable advocates with the experience to vigorously protect and enforce their trademark rights, as well as to help them avoid infringing the rights of others. Snell & Wilmer’s trademark litigators have the breadth and depth of experience to help clients with their business objectives in litigation.

• Our lawyers have been lead counsel in hundreds of trademark, trade dress, trademark dilution, unfair competition and false advertising litigation in courts throughout the United States – ranging from entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 companies
• Our lawyers have represented dozens of brand owners in federal appellate courts throughout the United States

We have represented clients ranging from entrepreneurs to Fortune 500 companies across a wide variety of industries. Our experience in disputes, large and small, enables us to effectively tailor each representation to fit that particular client’s needs. We have represented clients in matters involving a broad array of products and services, including, but not limited to, the following:

• Audio systems
• Automotive accessories
• Board games
• Books and printed materials
• Clothing
• Commercial storage systems
• Consumer products
• Construction products
• Education services
• Electrical service – residential and commercial
• Event entertainment services
• Film entertainment services
• Financial methods, systems and services
• Footwear
• Franchise systems
• Fuels technology—natural and synthetic
• Healthcare services and consulting
• Hearth products
• HVAC systems and services
• Internet applications
• Jewelry
• Life insurance and annuity products
• Nanotechnology in solar applications
• Nutritional supplements
• Personal care products
• Pesticide delivery systems
• Product packaging
• Residential home construction
• Retail grocery sales
• Skydiving
• Software games
• Specialty insurance
• Transportation services
• Video games

We also offer educational seminars and legal updates for our clients to keep them apprised of changes in trademark and unfair competition law that may affect their businesses.

Outside of litigation, our trademarks team is well equipped to handle all phases of trademark transactions.