BBK Tobacco & Foods LLP, doing business as HBI International (BBK), filed suit against several Florida limited liability companies last Thursday, arguing that they unfairly piggyback off BBK’s “Juicy” marks used in connection with BBK’s “Juicy” brand tobacco products. The suit names Bluum Lab LLC, Juucy LLC, and Juucy Holdings L.L.C. and asks for an order preventing them from selling disposable vape devices, liquid flavoring, and other products in a manner that leverages BBK’s Juicy marks through their use of the word “Juucy.”
The Lanham Act lawsuit asserts that BBK is in the business of designing, marketing, and selling products, including those in its Juicy brand line, like rolling papers, cigars, and vaporizers. It has several marks registered in connection with the Juicy brand and claims that they have attained significant goodwill and are uniquely associated with BBK, its business, as well as the “quality and nature of the JUICY Brand Products.”
For their part, the defendants purportedly operate an online shop, their Juucy website located at <juucy.com, that sells tobacco goods online. The filing notes that though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires market authorization for products like those the defendants sell, they have none.
Furthermore, the complaint points to the defendants’ deceptive use of the ® registration symbol next to the Juucy name. “A query of the PTO’s Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) reveals that there are no registrations or applications pending for the mark “JUUCY,” the complaint says.
The lawsuit claims that the defendants’ use of the Juucy name infringes on its own family of Juicy marks, diluting the brand’s value and confusing customers. BBK states claims for trademark infringement, unfair competition, false designation of origin, and false advertising under state and federal law. It seeks an injunction halting the alleged infringement as well as treble damages, disgorgement of profits, attorneys’ fees, and costs.
BBK is represented by Dickinson Wright PLLC.
