Haynes and Boone's Newsroom
V Is For "Vindication" For Famous Trademark Owners
10/12/2006
Jeffrey M. Becker, David A. Bell
The United States Supreme Court issued a landmark dilution ruling in 2003 in Mosely v. V Secret Catalogue, Inc., 537 U.S. 418 (2003). In that case, the national lingerie chain Victoria’s Secret had sent a cease-and-desist letter to the owners of an adult novelty store doing business as Victor’s Secret. In response to the demand letter, the shop changed its name to Victor’s Little Secret. Evidently deeming the addition of the term “Little” to be too, well, little, Victoria’s Secret filed suit in the Western District Court of Kentucky for, inter alia, blurring and tarnishment under the Federal Trademark Dilution Act of 1995 (“FTDA”).