Trademark Law Briefs

Ruling: Defendant’s motion to dismiss on first amendment grounds denied because the complaint plead facts on which defendant’s actions could be considered commercial speech.  Defendant’s claim that plaintiff’s achievements in breaking the sound barrier are within the public domain and therefore not subject to trademark law is unfounded because a false endorsement claim is actionable under the Lanham Act as plead by plaintiff.  Finally, defendant’s defenses regarding incidental use and permissible fair use are fact specific and therefore cannot be grounds to dismiss plaintiff’s complaint as a matter of law when plaintiff has plead sufficient facts.

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