Brian Horne Comments in Media on Supreme Court Review of Trademark Decision

In recent Law360 and Managing IP articles, litigation partner Brian Horne discussed the Supreme Court’s decision to grant cert in Dewberry Group Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers Inc., a case with potential ramifications related to the Lanham Act and beyond.

According to the articles, the central issue of the case is whether a plaintiff may disgorge profits made by corporate affiliates of a defendant corporation. In his comments to Law360, Horne speaks to a related question regarding disgorgement under the Lanham Act. While he maintains that the Dewberry Group’s argument is correct that disgorgement cannot be a penalty under the Lanham Act, he adds, under the Lanham Act, the district court has the discretion to increase a disgorgement award " according to the circumstances of the case.”   

Speaking to Managing IP about the Supreme Court’s decision, Horne addressed how the ruling could impact whom plaintiffs decide to sue in similar disputes. He maintained that, if Dewberry Group were to prevail, plaintiffs would likely sue all affiliates in order to disgorge their profits, adding that plaintiffs could also potentially sue a singular party with the stipulation that the profits of affiliates would also be at play.

Read the Law360 article here and the Managing IP article here [subscriptions required].