Taylor Reed Corp. v. Mennen Food Products, Inc.

214 F. Supp. 257, 136 U.S.P.Q. (BNA) 260, 1963 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10132
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Indiana
DecidedJanuary 11, 1963
DocketCiv. Nos. 2682, 2821
StatusPublished

This text of 214 F. Supp. 257 (Taylor Reed Corp. v. Mennen Food Products, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Taylor Reed Corp. v. Mennen Food Products, Inc., 214 F. Supp. 257, 136 U.S.P.Q. (BNA) 260, 1963 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10132 (N.D. Ind. 1963).

Opinion

GRANT, Chief Judge.

These patent cases were filed on January 20, 1960, and December 28, 1960, respectively, and arose out of an alleged infringement by defendant of plaintiff’s patent No. 2,673,805, which was issued on March 30, 1954 and covers an expansible package made of aluminum foil in which popcorn can be popped. Since both suits involved identical issues, one being brought against Mennen Food Products, Inc., and the other against the President of Mennen Food Products, Inc., individually, by pre-trial order of December 15, 1961, these cases were consolidated for the purpose of trial.

This trial was had on January 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 8th, 1962, plaintiff appearing by Messrs. John C. Blair and Robert H. Ware of the firm of Blair and Buckles, Stamford, Connecticut, and Mr. Roland Obenchain of South Bend, Indiana, and defendant appearing by Mr. Eugene C. Knoblock of the firm of Oltsch & Knob-lock, South Bend, Indiana.

After the trial, on June 7, 1962, plaintiff filed a Motion, pursuant to Rule 25 (c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, to join American Home Products Corporation as a defendant in this consolidated action. American Home Products Corporation, by its attorney, Mr. Eugene C. Knoblock, filed a special appearance for the purpose of opposing the Motion.

Counsel agreed, by statements made in the briefs supporting and opposing the Motion, that American Home Products Corporation had acquired substantially all of the assets of Mennen Food Products, Inc., including the business of Mennen Food Products, Inc., relating to the manufacture and sale of popcorn packages. It was also agreed that American Home Products Corporation, by its American Home Foods Division, is now engaged in the manufacture and sale of popcorn packages within this District, at LaPorte, Indiana.

On July 24, 1962, after a hearing, this Court granted the plaintiff’s Motion to Join American Home as an additional party defendant. At that time American Home was given thirty (30) days within which to submit any matter concerning the merits of the litigation.

It was stipulated and agreed between the parties at the conclusion of the trial that the issues would be decided by the Court on the basis of written briefs and final argument would be waived. Briefs were filed on February 23, March 14, April 13 and May 12, 1962, and after careful consideration of the printed record, the many exhibits and the fine briefs, this Court now enters the following Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Judgment.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. Plaintiff, The Taylor Reed Corporation, is a Connecticut corporation, having its principal place of business at Glenbrook, Connecticut.

2. Defendant, Mennen Food Products, Inc., is an Indiana corporation, having its principal place of business at LaPorte, Indiana.

3. Defendant, Frederick C. Mennen, is the President of the defendant Mennen Food Products, Inc., and is a resident of the State of Indiana.

4. Defendant, American Home Products Corporation, is a Delaware corporation, having its principal office in New York City, and is now engaged in the manufacture and sale of “Jiffy Pop”, in LaPorte, Indiana.

5. Defendant, American Home Products Corporation, acquired substantially all of the assets of Mennen Food Products, Inc., including the business of [259]*259Mennen Food Products, Inc., relating to the manufacture and sale of “Jiffy Pop”.

6. Defendant, American Home Products Corporation, assumed the obligations, liabilities and commitments of defendant, Mennen Food Products, Inc., concerning the claims of patent infringement made by plaintiff, The Taylor Reed Corporation, in the instant consolidated action.

7. Plaintiff is the owner of U. S. Patent No. 2,673,805, issued March 30, 1954 to Benjamin W. Colman, having secured this patent by purchase from the Mitchell Chemical Company of Detroit, Michigan, who, in turn, had secured the patent from Top-Pop Products Co., the assignee of Mr. Colman, upon its dissolution.

8. Colman Patent No. 2,673,805, discloses a novel, expansible package for storing, displaying, cooking, serving and disposing of popcorn.

9. Plaintiff’s product has been sold, since July, 1954, under the name “E-Z Pop”.

10. Defendant’s product has been sold, since October, 1959, under the name “Jiffy Pop”.

11. Plaintiff’s commercial product embodies the device disclosed in Patent No. 2,673,805.

12. During the prosecution of the patent application for Patent No. 2,673,-805, the inventor, Mr. Colman, cancelled fifteen (15) claims previously submitted and substituted therefor the single claim that was subsequently granted.

13. The prior art then before the Patent Office did not show, disclose, or suggest an expansible package with a cover arrangement that required Mr. Colman to limit his claim to an expansible package with a cover “arranged concavely” to avoid, or distinguish his invention from, the prior art.

14. Mr. Colman did not insert the words “arranged concavely” in his claim to distinguish any prior art package in order that his claim might be allowed.

15. The Patent Office Examiner did not require Mr. Colman to use the words “arranged concavely” in his claim to distinguish any prior art package in order that the claim might be allowed.

16. The prior art fails to show any kind of an expansible cooking package.

17. The Spencer and Welch patents, No. 2,480,679 and No. 2,495,435, respectively, both show transparent packages for heating or cooking food in a special, radio-frequency oven.

18. Both Spencer and Welch were considered by the Patent Office during the prosecution of Mr. Colman’s application.

19. In the light of 35 U.S.C. § 282, neither Spencer nor Welch disclose, suggest or anticipate Colman.

20. Fisher Patent No. 2,674,536, shows a sealed metal food tray with a flat foil cover for warming or reheating frozen food before serving.

21. Fisher’s cover is described by the patent as capable of slight rising to accommodate the vaporization of moisture upon reheating.

22. The Fisher patent fails to disclose or suggest Colman’s unfurling, ballooning cover, nor does Fisher’s incidental expansion serve any useful purpose.

23. The Fisher patent does not disclose, suggest or anticipate Colman in any way.

24. Calvert and Waters, Patents No. 2,293,589 and 2,380,134 respectively, both show rubber hydrochloride sacks for packaging food products and having dead space for thermal expansion of the contents during sterilization in boiling water.

25. Calvert and Waters both fail to disclose, suggest or anticipate Colman in any way.

26. MacCordy Patent No. 2,166,501 shows a crinkled metal milk bottle cap.

27. MacCordy fails to disclose, suggest or anticipate Colman in any way.

28. Geake and Bergerioux Patents No. 1,575,567 and 2,208,744 respectively, both show collapsible tubes for toothpaste or shaving cream.

[260]*26029. Geake or Bergerioux both fail to disclose, suggest or anticipate Colman in any way.

30.

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Damages
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Bluebook (online)
214 F. Supp. 257, 136 U.S.P.Q. (BNA) 260, 1963 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10132, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/taylor-reed-corp-v-mennen-food-products-inc-innd-1963.