Jack Daniel’s Wins Round at Supreme Court in ‘Bad Spaniels’ Dog Toy Trademark Fight
- Justices said poop-themed toy is not an ‘expressive work’
- Case could boost trademark holders that sue over parody
Jack Daniel’s whiskey bottles.
Photographer: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesThe US Supreme Court revived a lawsuit by the maker of Jack Daniel’s in a trademark clash over a chewable dog toy designed to mimic the iconic whiskey bottle.
The unanimous ruling is a victory for Jack Daniel’s Properties Inc., the Brown-Forman Corp. unit that makes the country’s best-selling whiskey. It’s a setback for VIP Products LLC, whose “Bad Spaniels” toy substitutes poop jokes for the words on the actual Jack Daniel’s bottle.