Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation v. The Partnerships And Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A
| Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation |
| The Partnerships And Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A |
| 1:2023cv13761 |
| September 15, 2023 |
| U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois |
| LaShonda A Hunt |
| Trademark |
| 15 U.S.C. § 1125 Trademark Infringement (Lanham Act) |
| Both |
Docket Report
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| Document Text |
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| Filing 26 MAILED to plaintiff(s) counsel Lanham Mediation Program materials. (daj, ) |
| Filing 25 MAILED trademark report to Patent Trademark Office, Alexandria VA. (daj, ) |
| Filing 24 SEALED TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER Signed by the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt on 11/6/23. Emailed notice to Plaintiff's Counsel. (cdh, ) |
| Filing 23 MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: Plaintiff's amended ex parte motion for entry of a temporary restraining order, including a temporary injunction, a temporary asset restraint, and expedited discovery #22 , motion for electronic service of process #10 , and ex parte motion for expedited discovery #11 are granted. Plaintiff's original ex parte motion for entry of a temporary restraining order and other relief #12 is terminated as moot. Plaintiff's written submissions establish that if Defendants were informed of this proceeding before a TRO could issue, assets would likely be redirected, defeating Plaintiff's interests in identifying Defendants, stopping the infringement, and obtaining an accounting. The Court finds that (1) the submitted evidence establishes a likelihood of success on the merits (including evidence of active infringement and sales into Illinois); (2) the harm to Plaintiff is irreparable and cannot be fully compensated by money damages; (3) an injunction is in the public interest because of the consumer confusion caused by counterfeit goods and infringement interferes with Plaintiff's ability to control its intellectual property; and (4) there is no countervailing harm to Defendants from an order directing them to stop infringement. Electronic service of process does not violate any treaty and is consistent with due process because it is an effective way to communicate with these online marketplace Defendants. Expedited discovery is warranted to identify Defendants and implement the asset freeze. If any Defendant were to appear and object, the Court will revisit the asset freeze, joinder, and personal jurisdiction. A $10,000 bond is sufficient to secure the injunctive relief. Enter Sealed Temporary Restraining Order. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) |
| Filing 22 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation AMENDED EX PARTE MOTION FOR ENTRY OF A TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER, INCLUDING A TEMPORARY INJUNCTION, A TEMPORARY ASSET RESTRAINT AND EXPEDITED DISCOVERY AND INCORPORATED MEMORANDUM OF LAW (Attachments: #1 Exhibit One (Declaration of L. Pittaway), #2 Exhibit Two (Side by Side Evidence))(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 21 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation AMENDED DECLARATION OF JUN WU (Attachments: #1 Exhibit One (Trademark Registration), #2 Exhibit Two (Copyright Registration), #3 Exhibit Three (Schedule A), #4 Exhibit Four (Evidence))(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 20 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation SECOND AMENDED SCHEDULE A (Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 19 SECOND AMENDED complaint by Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation against The Partnerships And Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A (Attachments: #1 Exhibit One (Trademark Registration), #2 Exhibit Two (Copyright Registration), #3 Exhibit Three (CBP Report), #4 Exhibit Four (Law Review Article), #5 Exhibit Five (DHS Article))(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 18 MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: Telephone status conference held. As discussed on the record, Plaintiff's amended Schedule A and any other amended documents in support of the ex parte request for a Temporary Restraining Order are due by 11/2/23. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) |
| Filing 17 MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: The Court has reviewed Plaintiff's Amended Complaint #15 adding allegations about defendants' interrelatedness (e.g., 48) and the sealed Amended Schedule A #16 reducing the number of defendants from 352 to 87. While plaintiff's efforts are appreciated, the Court still questions whether speculation about shared unique identifiers and similar irregularities justifies permissive joinder of 87 defendants under Fed. R. Civ. P. 20. Accordingly, this case is set for a telephonic status hearing on 10/19/23, at 9:45 AM. Attorneys/Parties should appear for the hearing by calling the Toll-Free Number: 877-336-1828, Access Code: 4082461. Members of the public and media may call in to listen to the hearing. Persons granted remote access to proceedings are reminded of the general prohibition against photographing, recording, and rebroadcasting court proceedings. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) |
| Filing 16 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation Amended Schedule A (Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 15 AMENDED complaint by Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation against The Partnerships And Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A (Attachments: #1 Exhibit One (Trademark Registration), #2 Exhibit Two (Copyright Registration), #3 Exhibit Three (CBP Report), #4 Exhibit Four (Law Review Article), #5 Exhibit Five (DHS Article))(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 14 MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: Upon review of the Complaint #1 , the Court questions whether joinder of 352 defendants is appropriate in this case. Plaintiff alleges that Plaintiff is the owner of a registered trademark of a "stylized and abstract heart-shaped design" and registered copyrights for two images of designs which "depict a cat with an elongated tail, including the trademark design affixed to the center of the cat (hereinafter referred to as "the Long Tail Cat Image")." (Dkt. No. #1 at 2-3; Exs. 1 & 2). Plaintiff filed this trademark and copyright infringement suit against 352 online retailers who are allegedly selling unauthorized products based on a variety of Plaintiff's trademarked and copyrighted images. (Id. at 3). The Complaint alleges that Defendants have created numerous internet stores that "share unique identifiers, such as design elements and similarities of the infringing products offered for sale, establishing a logical relationship between them and suggesting that Defendants' illegal operations arise out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences." (Id. at 4). In addition, the Complaint alleges that the "Infringing Products offered for sale by the Defendant Internet Stores bear similar irregularities and indicia of being counterfeit to one another, suggesting that the Infringing Products were manufactured by and come from a common source and that Defendants are interrelated[,]" and, on information and belief, that "Defendants, either individually or jointly, operate one or more e-commerce stores[,]" "Defendants are in constant communication with each other... [,]" "Defendants are an interrelated group of infringers and counterfeiters[,]" and "Plaintiff's investigation shows that the telltale signs of an illegal counterfeiting ring are present in the instant action." (Id. at 7-10). Although the Complaint and attachments total 170 pages, those are the only allegations offered to establish a connection between all the defendants. Such conclusory and speculative statements, however, do not satisfy the principles described in Estee Lauder Cosmetics Ltd. v. Schedule A, 334 F.R.D. 182 (N.D. Ill. 2020). Accordingly, Plaintiff is ordered to file a supplemental memorandum addressing the propriety of joinder by 10/10/23. Alternatively, by the same date, Plaintiff is granted leave to file an amended complaint with a smaller subset of defendants that includes specific allegations supporting joinder. Plaintiff's Motion for Electronic Service of Process Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(f)(3) #10 , Ex Parte Motion for Expedited Discovery, and Incorporated Memorandum of Law #11 , and Ex Parte Motion for Entry of a Temporary Restraining Order, Including a Temporary Injunction, a Temporary Asset Restraint and Expedited Discovery and Incorporated Memorandum of Law #12 are taken under advisement until the joinder issue is resolved. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) |
| Filing 13 MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: Plaintiff's Motion to Seal #9 is granted. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) |
| Filing 12 MOTION by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation for temporary restraining order (Attachments: #1 Exhibit Declaration of L. Pittaway, #2 Supplement Unreported Cases)(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 11 MOTION by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation FOR EXPEDITED DISCOVERY, AND INCORPORATED MEMORANDUM OF LAW (Attachments: #1 Supplement Unreported Cases)(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 10 MOTION by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation FOR ELECTRONIC SERVICE OF PROCESS PURSUANT TO FED. R. CIV. P. 4(f)(3) (Attachments: #1 Supplement Unreported Cases)(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 9 MOTION by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation to seal document sealed document, #8 , sealed document #4 , sealed document, #6 (Stanley, Michael) |
| CLERK'S NOTICE: Pursuant to Local Rule 73.1(b), a United States Magistrate Judge of this court is available to conduct all proceedings in this civil action. If all parties consent to have the currently assigned United States Magistrate Judge conduct all proceedings in this case, including trial, the entry of final judgment, and all post-trial proceedings, all parties must sign their names on the attached #Consent To# form. This consent form is eligible for filing only if executed by all parties. The parties can also express their consent to jurisdiction by a magistrate judge in any joint filing, including the Joint Initial Status Report or proposed Case Management Order. (axk, ) |
| CASE ASSIGNED to the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt. Designated as Magistrate Judge the Honorable Jeffrey T. Gilbert. Case assignment: Random assignment. (axk, ) |
| Filing 8 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation EXHIBIT FOUR TO THE DECLARATION OF JUN WU (DOC. 6) (Attachments: #1 Exhibit (Part Two of Five), #2 Exhibit (Part Three of Five), #3 Exhibit (Part Four of Five), #4 Exhibit (Part Five of Five))(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 7 ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation by Michael Thomas Stanley (Stanley, Michael) |
| Filing 6 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation (Attachments: #1 Exhibit One: Trademark Registration, #2 Exhibit Two: Copyright Registration, #3 Exhibit Three: Schedule A)(Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 5 NOTIFICATION of Affiliates pursuant to Local Rule 3.2 by Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation (Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 4 SEALED DOCUMENT by Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation Schedule A (Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 3 ATTORNEY Appearance for Plaintiff Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation by Lydia Pittaway (Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 2 CIVIL Cover Sheet (Pittaway, Lydia) |
| Filing 1 COMPLAINT filed by Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation; Jury Demand. Filing fee $ 402, receipt number AILNDC-21082624. (Attachments: #1 Exhibit One: Trademark Registration, #2 Exhibit Two: Copyright Registration, #3 Exhibit Three, #4 Exhibit Four, #5 Exhibit Five)(Pittaway, Lydia) |
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| Plaintiff: Yiwu Baimei Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd., a Chinese Limited Corporation | |
| Represented By: | Michael Thomas Stanley |
| Represented By: | Lydia Pittaway |
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| Defendant: The Partnerships And Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A | |
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