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Bearing Down On Trademark Bullies, Irina D. Manta

Fordham Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Law Journal

Trademark bullying has become a persistent problem, with large companies intimidating smaller entities with cease and desist campaigns and achieving anti-competitive results. A number of tactics exist to deal with bullying behavior. One of them is the imposition of judicial sanctions, but the standards in that area are unclear and the defendants often do not have the financial means to engage in litigation at all. Other, extralegal measures such as shaming have shown some success, but also present numerous drawbacks and prove insufficient when used against powerful actors. This symposium contribution proposes a new model that draws on the existing …