16
TOBACCO BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL
JULY/AUGUST 2014
NEWS & TRENDS
JULY/AUGUST 2014
The Bradford, Pennsylvania-based
maker of Zippo lighters and its sub-
sidiary ZippMark are suing LOEC, a
wholly owned subsidiary of Greens-
boro, North Carolina-based Lorillard,
for trademark infringement. Filed in
the United States District Court for the
Central District of California, the law-
suit asks that LOEC be prevented from
selling its blu e-cigarettes because
Zippo owns the trademark “BLU” for
its line of blue-flame butane lighters.
“Despite our attempts to resolve
this matter amicably, Zippo has been
compelled to seek the court’s as-
sistance to protect our ‘BLU’ trade-
marks,” says Zippo President and
CEO Gregory Booth. “Zippo is instant-
ly recognizable because we have long
understood the value of our brand
and the need to vigorously protect
it against use by others. Our ‘BLU’
trademarks are similarly valuable and
will be similarly protected.”
Lorillard, which acquired blu eCigs
in April 2012, is seeking a declaratory
judgment of noninfringement.
Zippo Sues Lorillard
Zippo Manufacturing is charging a Lorillard subsidiary
with trademark infringement over blu eCigs.
A lawsuit by the Scottsdale, Arizona-
based maker of NJOY and NJOY King
electronic cigarettes charged that Vic-
tory Electronic Cigarettes infringed
patented technology used in the NJOY
disposable King e-cigarette, and that
Victory e-cigarette cases infringed
NJOY’s trade dress rights protecting its
uniquely identifiable King case.
Spring Lake, Michigan-based Vic-
tory recently agreed to stop selling the
accused e-cigarettes and cases in re-
sponse to the suit, which was filed in
the U.S. District Court for the District of
Arizona in November.
“NJOY will continue to vigorously en-
force its valuable intellectual property
against those who appropriate its value
by using it without NJOY’s permission,”
a company spokesperson said after
the settlement was announced. NJOY
has acquired a reputation for pursuing
patent infringement cases across the
emerging vapor category.
Latham & Watkins, LLP and
Fennemore Craig, PC represented
NJOY in the case.
NJOY and Victory Settle Suit
The two parties have reached a settlement in a patent and trade dress infringement lawsuit.
