Venture Wins $0.42M Award Against McGills Glass in First Circuit

Holding:

In this case regarding the "Venture Tape" and "Venture Foil" marks, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the award of about $426,486 in damages and attorney's fees in favor of Venture Tape Corp. ("Venture"), a manufacturer of specialty adhesive tapes and foils used in the stained-glass industry. The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts in its judgment ordered McGills, an internet-based retailer of stained-glass supplies, to pay Venture $230,339.17 in damages, plus $188,583.06 in attorney's fees, and $ 7,564.75 in costs. On appeal, the First Circuit found no error in such determination, citing court precedent on the eight factors of "likelihood of confusion, such as similarity of the parties' marks and goods. McGills' admissions regarding the existence of most of these eight factors, particularly its owner's admission that his purpose in using the Venture marks was to lure customers to his site, justified the conclusion that no genuine dispute existed regarding the likelihood of confusion. As a result, Venture was entitled to summary judgment on Venture's claim for damages.

Detailed Summary:

Defendant-appellant McGills Glass Warehouse (“McGills”), an internet-based retailer of stained-glass supplies, and its owner Donald Gallagher, appealed from a district court judgment finding them liable for infringement of the registered trademarks “Venture Tape” and “Venture Foil,” and awarding the marks’ owner, plaintiff-appellee Venture, an equitable share of McGills’ profits, as well as costs and attorney’s fees. Opinion, p. 1.

In 1990, Venture, a manufacturer of specialty adhesive tapes and foils used in the stained-glass industry, procured two federal trademark registrations for products called “Venture Tape” and “Venture Foil,” respectively. Over the next fifteen years, Venture expended hundreds of thousands of dollars…

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