That’s what happened to our jewelry-maker cooperative!
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2Does the supplier hold a registered trademark on their name?– BrianCommented Jan 28, 2022 at 21:39
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1Asking whether something shows bad intentions is not a question on-topic (anywhere on SE, likely, but certainly not) at Law SE. Please ask a question about the law or legal process.– user4657Commented Jan 28, 2022 at 21:43
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"Asking whether something shows bad intentions is not a question on-topic." I hear you. Still, wouldn't a judge take into account evidence of the Distributor's unseemly eagerness to take over the widely-recognized and long-estblished name of the Supplier?– Maria AlanizCommented Jan 28, 2022 at 21:47
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It never ocurred to anyone to register the informal name of the cooperative. If someone would used some version of our name, but sold anything except our unique jewelry product,, it woudl not affect us and we would not mind.– Maria AlanizCommented Jan 28, 2022 at 21:52
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Will someone tell me the meaning of the negative votes for this question? Is it so obvious that there is NO correspondence whatsoever between morality and law? Is the motive of someone entirely irrelevant to the worth of a legal complaint?– Maria AlanizCommented Jan 30, 2022 at 1:02
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2 Answers
If you had a contract with a seller that required them to sell your goods under your organization's name, without modification, then changing the name would be a breach of contract and you could sue them for damages. Otherwise, you have no basic for taking them to court. On the other and, you could be trying to say something entirely different, namely that someone has taken the name of your goods but not the goods themselves, and sold something else under your name (or a very close approximation therein). That could be trademark infringement, and you could go to court over that.
The nature of your product name would matter significant. If the product were named "Artisanal Jewelry", there is little hope for success for success in a lawsuit (given that this is not a registered name). Such a name is a descriptive mark, and you would have to prove that the public associates "Artisanal Jewelry" specifically with your product. If the product is named Xoachhcaox Jewelry, that is an arbitrary and unique name, and it would not be too difficult to establish that they have infringed your trademark right. Let's say that the competitor names their product Xoachcaox Jewelry – the likelihood that a person would be confused as to which is which is very high. Defendant's intent would be a factor in deciding if there is infringement. Another possibility is, in state court, you might sue for "passing off" their goods as your goods.
It is unclear from your question whether you are talking about re-selling your goods under a different name (legal, barring a contractual statement to the contrary), or selling other goods using your name or a close approximation, which could be trademark infringement.
answered Jan 28, 2022 at 23:24
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In 2017 the Distributorr (since January 2000) registered 'Artisana' as a proprietary trademark. (The original is'Artesanas Campesinas") afterwards, it was published on all their virtual sales-materials, alongside images of the village craftswomen and their children. Commented Jan 29, 2022 at 2:03
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Our cooperative was an important supplier to about 100 Fair Trade retail since 1995. Our name was well-known, since our jewelry sells well. By 2017 the cooperative had been excluded from the Fair Trade Federation as a Buyer came forward to be our Distribututor.. Commented Jan 29, 2022 at 2:10
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As for our jewelry, it is Pacific Blue Abalone shell inlay and lapidary stone mosaics. Frequently visiting buyers would purchase one-of-each-style with the intention of copying the line. None succeeded; This is because our jewelry is very difficult to make and we work very cheap.. One buyer had it made in Peru, she offered the resulting production on Etsy at 100 dollars per piece, whereas our jewelry sold for 4 usd$, the distributor sold to the retailers for $12usd and the retailers sold to the public for $24-36usd$ My hat is off to those Peruvian lapidaries, they did a very nice job. Commented Jan 29, 2022 at 2:18
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"If you had a contract with a seller that required them to sell your goods under your organization's name, without modification..." As for contracts, I am from Taxco de Alarcón, a picturesque provincial city with thousands of silversmiths and hundreds of ,925 local silver jewelry wholesalers and retailers. Here, legal contracts are not the norm.. Commented Jan 29, 2022 at 3:56
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1Do you have the option to stop supplying product to the distributor?– crasicCommented Jan 29, 2022 at 4:05
You can establish rights in a trademark based on "legitimate use" of the mark. This protection arises automatically, from actual legitimate use of a mark for business or commercial purposes. Trademark rights that arise from use (rather than from registration) are sometimes referred to as "common law" trademark rights. (https://www.findlaw.com/smallbusiness/intellectual-property/trademark-protection-by-use-or-by-registration.html)
Accordingly, the “trademark”, based on specific facts (for e.g., prior time duration of use etc.) may or may be invalid or void, and the attempting to obtain a trademark or using the trademark may be a violation of the actual common law trademark that had been established and obtained by the use of the mark.
