Indiana Intellectual Property Law News
Lancaster, South Carolina – Nutramax Laboratories, Inc. and Nutramax Laboratories Veterinary Sciences, Inc. (collectively known as “Nutramax”) have filed suit against Indiana company, Abumayyaleh Bros, LLC. The Plaintiffs allege multiple intellectual property violations including trademark infringement, unfair competition, and tortious interference with contractual relationships.
According to the complaint, Nutramax contends that Abumayyaleh Bros, LLC is reselling Nutramax products, specifically their Proviable®-DC Digestive Health Supplement Capsules, on Amazon without authorization. The Plaintiffs are concerned that the products bear Nutramax’s well-known trademarks, such as PROVIABLE and NUTRAMAX LABORATORIES, but do not adhere to the stringent storage, distribution, and customer support standards set by Nutramax for its authorized resellers.
Nutramax asserts that the defendants’ unauthorized use of their trademarks constitutes a trademark infringement violation of Section 32(1) of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. § 1114(1)). By selling products under the Nutramax Marks without authorization, the Plaintiffs claim the defendants are causing consumer confusion regarding the source and authenticity of the products.
Plaintiffs also argue that according to Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)), the defendants’ actions amount to unfair competition. Nutramax claims that the defendants are misleading consumers into believing that the products they sell are genuine Nutramax products, which they are not due to the lack of adherence to Nutramax’s quality standards.
Furthermore, under Indiana common law, Nutramax alleges that the defendants are intentionally interfering with their contractual relationships with authorized resellers. By sourcing products from these resellers in violation of their agreements with Nutramax, the defendants are causing these resellers to breach their contracts with Nutramax.
Nutramax is seeking injunctive relief, actual damages, disgorgement of profits, and punitive damages to deter future misconduct. In addition, Nutramax is also asking for the costs of the action, including attorneys’ fees.
The case has been assigned to Senior Judge Sarah Evans Barker and Magistrate Judge M. Kendra Klump in the U.S. District Court of Southern Indiana, and assigned Case No. 1:24:cv-01047-SEB-MKK.