Intellectual Property – trademarks — mootness

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U.S. Supreme Court

Civil

Intellectual Property – trademarks — mootness

Where a trademark holder has entered into a broad covenant not to sue over current designs or colorable alterations of them, a trademark suit is moot.

The breadth of the covenant suffices to meet the burden imposed by the doctrine. The covenant is unconditional and irrevocable. It prohibits Nike from filing suit or making any claim or demand; protects both Already and Already’s distributors and customers; and covers not just current or previous designs, but also colorable imitations. Once Nike demonstrated that the covenant encompasses all of Already’s allegedly unlawful conduct, it became incumbent on Already to indicate that it engages in or has sufficiently concrete plans to engage in activities that would arguably infringe Nike’s trademark yet not be covered by the covenant. But Already failed to do so in the courts below or in this Court. The case is thus moot because the challenged conduct cannot reasonably be expected to recur. Cardinal Chemical Co. v. Morton Int’l, Inc., 508 U. S. 83, and Altvater v. Freeman, 319 U. S. 359, distinguished.

663 F. 3d 89, affirmed.

11-982 Already, LLC, v. Nike, Inc.

Roberts, C.J.; Kennedy, J., concurring.