Trademark Law | Expert Legal Commentary
May 10, 2010
Tiffany v. eBay: General Awareness of Mass Infringement Not Enough to Establish Contributory infringement
Tiffany (NJ) Inc. v. eBay, Inc.
By
Yuri Mikulka and Jeffrey J. Zuber of Zuber & Taillieu LLP
The Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has affirmed that brand owners are ultimately responsible for policing and fighting counterfeits, even when a high volume of infringement occurs in one outlet. In Tiffany (NJ) Inc. v. eBay, Inc., 600 F.3d 93 (2nd Cir. 2010), the Second Circuit held that a service provider like eBay only becomes liable for contributory infringement if it continues to provide its services to a specific individual who it knows, or has reason to know, is selling counterfeit goods. The Circuit Court remanded the false advertising claims of the case for the district court to determine whether eBay’s ads falsely implied that all of the goods offered on its site were genuine.
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About the Authors
Yuri Mikulka is a Partner of Zuber & Taillieu LLP, and chairs its litigation department.
Jeffrey J. Zuber is a Partner of Zuber & Taillieu LLP, focusing on intellectual property litigation and arbitration.
View a PDF of the judicial opinion