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Supreme Court's 'Bad Spaniels' Decision Didn't Overturn Rogers, But …
In a win for trademark holders, the U.S. Supreme Court offered a narrow ruling in the dispute involving "dog toys and whiskey." Trademark-rights attorneys praised the Supreme Court's justices for the decision in Jack Daniel's Properties Inc v. VIP Products LLC, 22-148, which offered a rare mix of constitutional and trademark law, though easing for now the fears of content creators that refer to pre-existing marks.
Writing for the unanimous court, Justice Elena Kagan stated that "consumer confusion about source — trademark law's cardinal sin — is most likely to arise when someone uses another's trademark as a trademark."
The High Court sided with Jack Daniel's, saying VIP Products' "Bad Spaniels Silly Squeaker" dog chew toy borrowed too much from — and failed to properly parody — the Tennessee distillery's well-known bottle. "Bad Spaniels is about the same size and shape as an ordinary bottle of Jack Daniel's. The faux bottle, like the original, has a black label with stylized white text and a white filigreed border," Justice Kagan explained, calling Jack Daniel's trademarked look the product's "source identification."
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