Entm't One Uk Ltd. v. 2012shiliang

384 F. Supp. 3d 941
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Illinois
DecidedMay 2, 2019
DocketCase No. 18 C 4461
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 384 F. Supp. 3d 941 (Entm't One Uk Ltd. v. 2012shiliang) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Entm't One Uk Ltd. v. 2012shiliang, 384 F. Supp. 3d 941 (illinoised 2019).

Opinion

Harry D. Leinenweber, Judge

This case arises from the unauthorized sale of counterfeit merchandise through various online seller accounts. For the reasons stated herein, Defendants' Motions to Terminate Preliminary Injunction (Dkt. Nos. 78, 79) are denied, and Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment (Dkt. No. 86) is granted.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Entertainment One UK Ltd. is a company organized under the laws of the *947United Kingdom. (Pl.'s Statement of Facts ("SOF") ¶ 1, Dkt. No. 88.) Plaintiff develops, produces, and distributes entertainment content, including the "Peppa Pig" brand. (SOF ¶ 2.) Peppa Pig is a popular animated television series aimed at preschoolers. (SOF ¶¶ 3, 11.) Plaintiff owns several U.S. federal trademark registrations for its Peppa Pig property; two are relevant in this case. The first is U.S. Registration No. 4,872,348 ("the '348 mark") for the word mark "PEPPA PIG." (SOF ¶ 14.) The second is U.S. Registration No. 4,783,931 ("the '931 mark"), a design mark of Peppa Pig herself-a stylized pig wearing a dress. (SOF ¶ 15.) The Court will refer to the trademarks collectively as the "Peppa Pig trademarks."

Plaintiff initiated this case in 2018 by suing over 400 online retail stores. (See Schedule A Defendants, Ex. 2 to Pl.'s Am. Compl., Dkt. No. 10-2.) Plaintiff alleged that those 400 Defendants were willfully manufacturing, distributing, and selling counterfeit versions of Peppa Pig trademarked and/or copyrighted designs. The Court entered a temporary restraining order, prohibiting all Defendants from using, reproducing, selling, and shipping Plaintiff's trademark and copyright material. The Court later converted the temporary restraining order to a preliminary injunction, which is still in place.

The Court has since entered default judgment against most Defendants, and others have been voluntarily dismissed. The case remains pending against only two Defendants: an eBay store named "luckyjerryxiang," and an eBay store named "6guys9" (collectively herein after, "Defendants"). Defendants both sold a product that they named "Peppa Pig Head Cookie Cutter," which is, as the name implies, a cookie cutter shaped in the outline of Peppa Pig's head. (SOF ¶¶ 22-24, 27-28.) Both Defendants accepted payment for the Peppa Pig cookie cutter via PayPal and shipped the product to Illinois. (SOF ¶¶ 25-26, 30-31.) Defendants are not authorized retailers of Peppa Pig products. (SOF ¶ 36.) Defendants have filed nearly identical pleadings to date, but it appears that each store is operated by a separate person. 6guys9 is operated by HaiJie Lin, and luckyjerryxiang is operated by Jian Feng; both individuals are located in the People's Republic of China. (SOF ¶¶ 4-5.)

Plaintiff now moves for summary judgment against Defendants for: (1) willful federal trademark infringement and counterfeiting under Section 32 of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1114 ; (2) false designation of origin under Section 43 of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1125 ; and (3) violation of the Illinois Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, 815 ILCS 510/2(a). Plaintiff further requests a statutory damages award of at least $ 100,000 from each Defendant; attorneys' fees and costs; and a permanent injunction enjoining Defendants from violating Plaintiff's rights in the Peppa Pig trademarks. Defendants move to terminate the preliminary injunction.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

A district court "shall grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." FED. R. CIV. P. 56(a). A genuine dispute of material fact only exists if a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the non-moving party. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby , 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). The party seeking summary judgment has the burden of establishing the lack of any genuine issue of material fact. See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett , 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). A court must construe all facts and draw all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to *948the nonmoving party. Majors v. Gen. Elec. Co. , 714 F.3d 527, 532-33 (7th Cir. 2013) (citation omitted).

III. DISCUSSION

A. Summary Judgment

1. Statement of Facts

As an initial matter, the Court will address Plaintiff's Statement of Facts and Defendants' response, or lack thereof. The Local Rules of the Northern District of Illinois require the party moving for summary judgment to submit a statement of undisputed material facts. See N.D. Ill. L. R. 56.1. When the opposing party fails to controvert the moving party's statement in the manner dictated by Local Rule 56.1, those facts are deemed admitted for the purpose of the summary judgment motion. Smith v. Lamz , 321 F.3d 680, 683 (7th Cir. 2003). Plaintiff submitted a proposed list of 54 undisputed material facts, each supported by citation to the record, in accordance with Rule 56.1. In response, Defendants filed documents titled "Defendant Statement of Material Facts" that each contained two brief factual assertions. (See Dkt. Nos.

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Bluebook (online)
384 F. Supp. 3d 941, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/entmt-one-uk-ltd-v-2012shiliang-illinoised-2019.