I often litigate unfair business competition cases.  These cases can arise in a variety of settings including actions for trademark infringement, trade secret misappropriation, or business torts including interference with contractual relations.  In Federal Court the Lanham Act is the federal unfair competition statute that protects consumers from trademark infringement or false advertising.

In California there is also an unfair competition law.  California’s unfair competition law (Business & Professions Code § 17200 et seq., UCL) “is a notoriously broad statute.”  This law defines the breath of the statute by stating: “… unfair competition shall mean and include any unlawful, unfair or fraudulent business act or practice and unfair, deceptive, untrue or misleading advertising…”

Virtually any law or regulation including federal or state, statutory or common law, can serve as predicate for a § 17200 “unlawful” violation.  If a “business practice” violates any law literally it also violates § 17200 and may be redressed under that section. [People v. E.W.A.P., Inc. (1980) 106 CA3d 315, 319, 165 CR 73, 75] .  As the California Supreme Court has said, § 17200 “borrows” violations of other laws and treats them as unlawful practices independently actionable under § 17200. [Farmers Ins. Exch. v. Sup.Ct. (1992) 2 C4th 377, 383]

In 2004 the California voters passed Proposition 64 which limited lawsuits brought under this law.  The limitation required the person bringing the lawsuit to have suffered an actual injury and instead of allowing what was referred to as representative actions, they are now required to be class action lawsuits and follow the strict requirements of such lawsuits.

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Robert G. Klein, Esq. is a Los Angeles trademark attorney, business litigation attorney lawyer and a Los Angeles business lawyer who specializes in trademark infringement, copyright infringement, business torts, breach of contract actions and unfair competition.  He feels it is important to hire a Los Angeles trademark lawyer and a Los Angeles business lawyer if one is involved in litigation in that locale.  Robert G. Klein is a prominent Los Angeles business attorney and is available for consultation on matters involving trademark infringement, copyright infringement, breach of contract cases, business torts, fraud, and business law matters.  He has successfully obtained many multi-million dollar jury verdicts. Many of Mr. Klein’s court decisions have been published as case authority and he has appeared before the United States Supreme Court for oral argument. Mr. Klein has also published “Consumer List: Trade Secret or Fair Game?”, which is an article published in the Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine. Los Angeles trademark infringement attorney Robert G. Klein can be reached at (213) 996-8508 or visit our web site at http://www.kleinlitigation.com

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The Lanham Act [15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq.] is the exclusive source of federal law governing infringement of trade, service, collective, and certification marks registered on the principal and supplemental registers of the United States Patent and Trademark Office [ Intern. Order of Job's Daughters v. Lindeburg & Co. (9th Cir. 1980) 633 F.2d 912, 915-916 ].

The objectives of trademark law are to protect consumers from being misled as to the source of products, to prevent impairment of a trademark’s value to its owner, and to achieve the preceding objectives in a manner consistent with free competition [E-Systems, Inc. v. Monitek, Inc. (9th Cir. 1983) 720 F.2d 604, 607 ].

To this end, the intent of the Lanham Act is to regulate commerce within the control of Congress by making actionable the deceptive and misleading use of marks, to protect registered marks used in commerce from interference by state or territorial legislation, and to protect persons engaged in commerce against unfair competition. Furthermore, the act is intended to prevent fraud and deception in commerce by the use of reproductions, copies, counterfeits, or colorable imitations of registered marks. Finally, the act is intended to provide rights and remedies stipulated by treaties and conventions respecting trademarks, trade names, and unfair competition entered into between the United States and foreign nations [15 U.S.C. § 1127].

Robert G. Klein, Esq. is a Los Angeles trademark attorney and a Los Angeles business lawyer who specializes in trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and unfair competition.  He feels it is important to hire a Los Angeles trademark lawyer and a Los Angeles business lawyer if one is involved in litigation in that locale.  Robert G. Klein is a prominent Los Angeles business attorney and is available for consultation on matters involving trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and business law matters.  He has successfully obtained many multi-million dollar jury verdicts. Many of Mr. Klein’s court decisions have been published as case authority and he has appeared before the United States Supreme Court for oral argument. Mr. Klein has also published “Consumer List: Trade Secret or Fair Game?”, which is an article published in the Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine. Los Angeles trademark infringement attorney Robert G. Klein can be reached at (213) 996-8508 or visit our web site at http://www.kleinlitigation.com

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Trade dress is the totality of elements that comprises how a product or service is packaged or presented.  These elements combine to create the entire visual image that is presented to the consumer and in some instances is capable of acquiring exclusive legal rights, much like the way a trademark obtains legal rights as an identifying symbol of the origin of the goods or services.

The key to obtaining legal protection as a trade dress is using the entire trade dress or packaging in a way where it denotes product source.  A product feature whose only impact is decorative, without any source identifying role cannot obtain the legal protection of trade dress law.

To determine trade dress infringement and therefore to find unfair competition, the court must consider the total image or overall impression of the plaintiff’s product, package and advertising and compare this with the corresponding image or impression of the defendant’s product.  Like in trademark law and finding of trademark infringement, if the defendant’s trade dress or packaging is likely to cause confusion with that of the plaintiff’s first use of their trade dress the court can find unfair competition and issue an injunction to prevent confusion among consumers.

Robert G. Klein, Esq. is a Los Angeles trademark attorney and a Los Angeles business lawyer who specializes in trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and unfair competition.  He feels it is important to hire a Los Angeles trademark lawyer and a Los Angeles business lawyer if one is involved in litigation in that locale.  Robert G. Klein is a prominent Los Angeles business attorney and is available for consultation on matters involving trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and business law matters.  He has successfully obtained many multi-million dollar jury verdicts. Many of Mr. Klein’s court decisions have been published as case authority and he has appeared before the United States Supreme Court for oral argument. Mr. Klein has also published “Consumer List: Trade Secret or Fair Game?”, which is an article published in the Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine. Los Angeles trademark infringement attorney Robert G. Klein can be reached at (213) 996-8508 or visit our web site at http://www.kleinlitigation.com

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