Opinion ID: 2816581
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The BMF Offroad File

Text: At trial, Defendants objected on relevance grounds to the admission of the “BMF Offroad” file. Plaintiff argued that file was relevant to the issue of willfulness because it showed that Defendants continued to use BMF logos and marks despite receiving a rejection based on the likelihood of confusion with Plaintiff’s mark. The district court ruled for Plaintiff, finding that the “BMF Offroad” file history “can make it more likely than not, than it would be without the evidence, that there is an intention to use the mark willfully with knowledge of the competing mark.” (R. 108, Bench Ruling, at 2444.) Nos. 14-1357/1608/1939 CFE Racing Products v. BMF Wheels, et al. Page 14 “Evidence is relevant if . . . it has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable than it would be without the evidence,” and that fact “is of consequence” in the action. Fed. R. Ev. 401. Defendants’ intent and alleged good faith in using the letters “BMF” was a material issue in the case, and one to which the defense devoted considerable energy. In fact, from their opening statement, Defendants made Weld’s conscientious compliance with the PTO process and his reliance on the federal government’s stamp of approval in registering “BMF Wheels” a centerpiece of their argument that he acted in good faith. As a matter of relevance, we agree with the district court that Defendants’ continued use of “BMF Offroad” in their advertising after learning of the PTO rejection and abandoning the application has a “tendency” to make it “more probable” that their use of the letters “BMF” was willful. Id. On appeal, Defendants now argue that the “BMF Offroad” file should have been excluded under Rule 403 in light of the risk of confusion and unfair prejudice that can result from introducing PTO office actions. Defendants cite an unpublished case from the Northern District of Illinois that collected cases cautioning against admission of PTO office actions, Minemyer v. B-Roc Representatives, Inc., 2012 WL 346621, at  (N.D. Ill. Feb. 2, 2012). Introducing a PTO file does raise a risk that the jury will be unduly influenced by the examining attorney’s determinations or confused by the terms of art in the text—and these, undoubtedly may be sound reasons for a district court to exclude such documents under Rule 403 balancing in a particular case. Defendants did not raise this argument below, however, so our review is for plain error only.3 Bowman v. Corr. Corp. of Am., 350 F.3d 537, 548 (6th Cir. 2003). Any error by the district court was not plain. While there may be sound reasons to exclude PTO files and office actions, cases do not unanimously condemn use of PTO rejections to show bad faith. In some cases, courts have relied on a party’s persistence in the face of PTO rejections as evidence of bad faith. Mr. Water Heater Enters. v. 1-800-Hot Water Heater, LLC, 648 F. Supp. 2d 576, 588 (S.D.N.Y. 2009); E. Gluck Corp. v. Rothenhaus, 585 F. Supp. 2d 505, 517-18 (S.D.N.Y. 2008), abrogated on other grounds by Salinger v. Colting, 607 F.3d 68 (2d 3 Defendants did allude to the possibility of confusion resulting from the “BMF Offroad” application in argument to the district court, but the concern they expressed was distinct from the one proffered on appeal. Below, they argued that the jurors would be confused by the discussion of a logo that was not an accused mark in the case, and they raised concern that time and attention would be wasted on tangential issues. Moreover, Defendants expressly made relevance the basis for their objection at trial, and they did not request that the district court exclude the evidence as unduly prejudicial under Rule 403 after receiving the ruling on relevance. Nos. 14-1357/1608/1939 CFE Racing Products v. BMF Wheels, et al. Page 15 Cir. 2010). Moreover, because Defendants so heavily emphasized Weld’s reliance on the PTO process as probative of his good faith, introduction of evidence that he disregarded red flags raised by the PTO about the use of the letters “BMF” in the aftermarket industry had probative value in countering the theory of the defense. Plaintiff also argued to the district court that because Defendants were relying on the presumption of validity attached to the “BMF Wheels” registration as part of their defense, the jury should be permitted to consider evidence that the PTO did find a likelihood of confusion in a similar application where the examining attorney was aware of Plaintiff’s mark. In light of the lack of clear guidance in the cases and the probative value of the materials in responding to the defenses raised in this case, we cannot say that the court plainly erred in failing to sua sponte exclude the materials under Rule 403 balancing.