BMW sues car company in counterfeit suit
BMW has sued a car company in the US for trademark and design patent infringement.
It filed its lawsuit against Mazz Auto Group at the US District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division, on Wednesday, January 18.
The car company argued that Mazz Auto Group infringed and diluted its trademarks by using them on counterfeit products, used false designations of origin, competed unfairly and committed fraudulent business practices.
BMW also said that its design patents were infringed and asked for a permanent injunction against the company.
The car company owns wheel design patents, which include US numbers D551,149; D560,585; and D671,473.
According to the suit, (pdf) BMW has owned trademarks for the term ‘BMW’ since 1955. The company also registered marks for the term in 1987, 2008 and 2013.
The suit said that the defendants own and operate an online website where they promote and sell counterfeit car wheel rims, centre caps, and badges which feature BMW trademarks and design patents.
The defendants also allegedly sold these fake parts on advertisement site Craigslist.
Mazz Auto Group also operated a “bricks and mortar” business under the name Mazz Autosport in California, where the company sold fake BMW products.
BMW added that the defendants had knowledge of the company’s ownership of the marks and of the fame in the marks, and adopted them in bad faith with intent to cause confusion, as well as tarnish, counterfeit and dilute its marks and products.
The car business said that the actions were committed in bad faith in order to confuse and deceive the "consuming public”.
BMW asked for damages, triple damages, profits, $2 million per counterfeit mark, preliminary and permanent injunctive relief, attorneys’ fees, costs of bringing the suit, a jury trial and further relief that the court may deem just and equitable.
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