A dispute between The KatiRoll Company, Inc. and Kati Junction, Inc., both of which sell Indian food, produced a court decision useful in examining trademark/servicemark and trade dress issues.
In 2002, KatiRoll opened its first store-front in New York City. That location would expand to two additional restaurants in Manhattan. It sold distinctive food items, offered discounts on multiple purchases, and used an orange and white color scheme on its employee uniforms, signage and marketing. The location setup was consistent in all of the stores, so that each store had front windows, limited seating and an open kitchen. Finally, each store had wood trim in its interior. Because KatiRoll invested much time and expense in developing its natural menu items, each employee signed a non-disclosure agreement in addition to agreeing in their employee manuals that these food items were of secret formulations.
Kati Junction opened a restaurant some three blocks from a KatiRoll location. Kati Junction’s color scheme, menu, specials, store layout, and trim were nearly identical to those used by KatiRoll. Kati Junction hired seven current and former KatiRoll employees for this new store. Since Kati Junction opened, KatiRoll customers asked management if the Kati Junction store was part of the KatiRoll chain.
KatiRoll sued Kati Junction and the seven employees, alleging infringement of a registered service mark, trade dress infringement, unfair competition, and other claims addressed to the unfair business practices and theft of trade secrets. Kati Junction sought dismissal of almost all of the claims.
Addressing the trade dress claim in this context, the court highlighted the basic definition of trade dress, as “‘the total image of a business’ and which ‘may include the shape and general appearance of the exterior of the restaurant, the identifying sign, the interior kitchen floor plan, the decor, the menu, the equipment used to serve food, the servers; uniform and other features reflecting the total image of the restaurant.'” This protection was intended to protect the goodwill and the company’s ability to distinguish itself from its competitors. To establish this claim, the plaintiff must establish the elements and details of how the trade dress is expressed, and must satisfy certain minimum requirements to show that the trade dress is legitimate and enforceable, and representative of that business.
Because KatiRoll had set out sufficient details to establish these claims, the court refused to dismiss any of its claims. The Court’s decision also indicates that it saw the allegations against Kati Junction credible on multiple grounds, and on claims beyond those described in this article, which spells trouble for Kati Junction’s defense.