My-T-Fine Corporation v. Samuels

69 F.2d 76 (1934)

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My-T-Fine Corporation v. Samuels

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
69 F.2d 76 (1934)

Sarah Holley headshot
  • Written by Sarah Holley, JD

Facts

My-T-Fine (plaintiff) sold pudding in a small cardboard box under the name My-T-Fine. The box was green, with red stripes around all of the edges, the name and a white chevron printed on the front, and directions for use printed on the back. Since it began selling pudding in 1929, My-T-Fine’s sales had grown to over one million, and its pudding had become known throughout the United States. Later, Samuels (defendant) started selling a similar pudding product in a similar cardboard box under the name Velmo. Samuel’s box was the same shade of green as My-T-Fine’s box, had red stripes around all of the edges of about the same width as My-T-Fine’s box, had its name and a black chevron printed on the front, and directions for use printed on the back, which had been copied verbatim from My-T-Fine’s box. My-T-Fine thereafter brought suit for trade-dress infringement and moved for a preliminary injunction. Finding that there were not enough similarities between the boxes, the district court denied My-T-Fine’s motion. My-T-Fine appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Hand, J.)

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Casebooks

Trademark

Key Terms

  • Unfair CompetitionAn action for unfair competition lies in the intentional doing of some act to the detriment of another’s business without just cause or excuse.
  • Lanham Act[15 U.S.C. §§ 1051–1127] A federal statute that regulates the use of trademarks, i.e., pictures, words, and other symbols used to identify goods and services, in commercial activity. The Lanham Act also defines various federal claims for unfair competition, including claims based on false advertising.
  • Likelihood of ConfusionThe probability that potential consumers will be confused about the source of the product. Courts use likelihood of confusion as a standard to evaluate trademark infringement claims.
  • Trademark InfringementUnauthorized use of subject matter similar enough to trademarked subject matter likely to cause confusion in the mind of an ordinary consumer as to the source of a product.

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