Louis Vuitton Malletier (Vuitton) is a well-known manufacturer of luxury luggage, leather goods, handbags, and accessories. Vuitton has a number of trademarks that it regularly uses in connection with its products. Among them are the LOUIS VUITTON name and the LV mark. The companys products are expensively priced and sold in department stores and boutique stores. Vuitton filed a trademark infringement and trademark dilution lawsuit against Haute Diggity Dog LLC, a firm that produced and sold, primarily through pet stores, inexpensive dog chew toys under the Chewy Vuitton brand name and various other brand names consisting of humorous versions of other companies actual trademarks. The dog chew toys had the Chewy Vuitton name on them, along with a CV mark.
Please research the case (Louis Vuitton Malletier, SA v. Haute Diggity Dog, LLC, 507 F.3d 252 (4th Cir. 2007)) and post your answers here to the following questions:
1. Did Vuitton win its trademark infringement claim? State the legal basis used by the court in making its decision.
2. Did Vuitton win its trademark dilution claim? State the legal basis used by the court in making its decision.
3. Regardless of the decision of the Court of Appeals, do you believe that the actions of Haute Diggity Dog infringed on and/or diluted the trademark of Vuitton?