Juul Labs, Inc. (JLI) filed a complaint against RAK Enterprise LLC in the District of Connecticut on Tuesday for trademark infringement of their Juul Pod vaping products. The plaintiff claimed that RAK manufactured and sold confusingly similar counterfeit products for their own profit.
On December 13, 2019, Juul sent a cease-and-desist letter to RAK, asking them to halt “the sale, manufacture, marketing and importation of Counterfeit Goods and all other unauthorized use of JLI’s intellectual property,” and notifying the defendant of their “willful infringement under federal law.” They claimed that this would cause “economic loss to JLI including loss of sales of genuine JUUL Products, damages the goodwill of the JUUL brand, and thwarts JLI’s honest efforts and considerable expenditures to promote its genuine JUUL Products.”
The plaintiff claimed that RAK used designs that are “identical to, or substantially indistinguishable from, the JUUL Marks are intended to cause, have caused, and are likely to continue to cause public confusion or mistake, or to deceive consumers, the public, and the trade into believing that the Counterfeit Goods are genuine.” The defendant allegedly sold products that are “only authorized for sale in particular countries outside the United States,” known as “Grey Market Goods.” Therefore, these goods are not in compliance with FDA rules, which the plaintiff believed these fake products “are likely to deceive, confuse, and mislead purchasers and prospective purchasers into believing that the products are authorized by [JUUL].”
Juul is seeking an award of RAK’s profits and damages for trademark infringement and unfair competition, an injunction enjoining the Defendant, seizure of counterfeit goods, pre- and post-judgment interest, treble damages and other relief.
The plaintiff is represented by McCormick, Paulding & Huber PLLC.
