 photo courtesy of tropicalisle.com IPC recently represented client, Tropical Isle, the home of the Hand Grenade cocktail, in a lawsuit against Willie’s Chicken Shack in federal court, claiming the plastic cup used to serve Willie’s signature Cocktail too closely resembles the trademarked Hand Grenade cocktail cup. Tropical Isle has been selling Hand Grenades, described as “New Orleans’ most powerful drink,” since 1985 and the trademark for the Hand Grenade cup design dates to 1992.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, Eastern District Court of Louisiana, claims, “the intent of Willie’s Chicken Shack is unmistakable – to wrongly divert to Willie’s Chicken Shack consumers who desire a Tropical Isle Hand Grenade cocktail in a Tropical Isle souvenir cup.” IPC attorneys Kent Barnett and Greg Latham were lead counsel for Tropical Isle; the trial team included, Ian Barras, Stephen Kepper and Rick Sahuc. The parties reached a settlement of the case in mid-March, just before the matter was scheduled to go to trial in front of Judge Wendy Vitter. The specific terms of the settlement are confidential, but for Tropical Isle the outcome is favorable. Tropical Isle owns a portfolio of federally-registered trademarks surrounding its world-famous Hand Grenade cocktail. IPC has served as Tropical Isle’s intellectual property counsel for nearly a decade. If you have questions about intellectual property rights or trademark issues, contact us at (504) 322-7166 for more information on how our professionals can help. |
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