Fletcher YoderA patent holder’s injunction may not apply to new products that are sufficiently different from an infringing product, and the remedy for the patent holder in such a case is not a contempt proceeding but rather a new infringement suit.
Defendant’s use of plaintiff’s “Reno Air Races” and “pylon logo” marks on merchandise defendant sells at racing events has caused, and is likely to continue to cause, consumer confusion, since plaintiff’s marks are strong, and since plaintiff and defendant sell substantially similar merchandise bearing identical or substantially similar marks in extremely close proximity.
Plaintiff conducted reasonable inquiry before filing suit for infringement of therapeutic method patent, even though plaintiff did not conduct chemical analysis of accused product, and subsequently abandoned action upon learning that defendant’s product contained no more than .00005 percent of composition claimed as principal active ingredient of invention.