20 Jul 2001

  
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Cartoonist Kieron Dwyer Sued By Starbucks

Starbucks parody
While Dwyer does not use Starbucks' name or a pun on its name in his parody, Judge Chesney did find that Dwyer's was "confusingly similar" to the mermaid logo, and that the phrase "consumer whore" could be considered offensive to some and thereby constitute a tarnishment of the Starbucks mark. She further found that Dwyer's sale of merchandise bearing this "confusingly similar" logo constituted a trademark infringement.

In other words, while Judge Chesney agreed that Dwyer's image was a legitimate parody in and of itself, and thereby protected by the First Amendment, the sale of items bearing that image constituted an infringement on Starbucks' trademark. Dwyer cannot profit by this image, because the only reason that people would buy the t-shirt, mugs, or stickers was because they bore a logo "confusingly similar" to Starbucks'. The temporary restraining order she eventually signed now bars Dwyer from selling any such merchandise.


 
 
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