Opinion ID: 796047
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: D'Amato's Defenses to Audi's Trademark Infringement Claim

Text: 44 D'Amato defends this claim on several grounds. As an initial matter, D'Amato raises the defense that Audi's claim is barred by the statute of limitations. However, the Lanham Act does not contain a statute of limitations. Rather, courts use the doctrine of laches to determine whether a suit should be barred. Ford Motor Co. v. Catalanotte, 342 F.3d 543, 550 (6th Cir. 2003). 45 Audi filed this suit on February 23, 2004. D'Amato contends that he first posted content to www.audisport.com on June 4, 1999. When deciding whether a suit is time-barred under the doctrine of laches, a court should consider (1) whether the owner of the mark knew of the infringing use; (2) whether the owner's delay in challenging the infringement of the mark was inexcusable or unreasonable; and (3) whether the infringing user was unduly prejudiced by the owner's delay. Kellogg Co. v. Exxon Corp., 209 F.3d 562, 569 (6th Cir. 2000) (citing Brittingham v. Jenkins, 914 F.2d 447 (4th Cir. 1990)). The district court judge correctly found that in this case, D'Amato has presented no evidence demonstrating that Audi knew of his infringing use and inexcusably failed to challenge it. Audi, 381 F.Supp.2d at 665. In his appeal, D'Amato has provided no additional evidence that Audi's delay was intentional or inexcusable. We also agree with the district court's conclusion that D'Amato was not unduly prejudiced because he was never actually authorized to use Audi's trademarks for a commercial purpose. Id. 46 D'Amato also defends on the ground that he had consent to use the trademarks. Even if Carlson, as a dealer, had permission to use Audi's trademarks, this agreement with Audi did not give Carlson the right to grant such permission to another party. Therefore, D'Amato did not have the right to profit from the goods Carlson provided. Further, as discussed above, nothing in the press releases sent to D'Amato appeared to confer consent to use Audi's trademarks for commercial gain. D'Amato's website also stated that he had a signed agreement allowing usage of Audi-owned tradenames, even though no such agreement ever existed. 47 D'Amato contends that any proof of consumer confusion is rebutted by a disclaimer on his website which stated, [t]his page is not associated with Audi GmbH or Audi USA in any way. First, such a disclaimer does not absolve D'Amato of liability for his unlawful use of marks identical to Audi's trademarks. Ford Motor Co. v. Lloyd Design Corp., 184 F.Supp.2d 665, 673-74 (E.D.Mich. 2002) (The principle that disclaimers are often ineffective is especially applicable when the infringer uses an exact replica of the relevant trademark.) In addition, as we stated in PACCAR, 48 [a]n infringing domain name has the potential to misdirect consumers as they search for web sites associated with the owner of a trademark. A disclaimer disavowing affiliation with the trademark owner read by a consumer after reaching the web site comes too late. This initial interest confusion is recognized as an infringement under the Lanham Act. 49 PACCAR, 319 F.3d at 253. Further, any effect this disclaimer had in reducing confusion would likely be negated by the statement on the website contending that there was a signed agreement with Audi. 50 D'Amato also defends his actions on the ground that his [w]ebsite merely had hyperlinks to goods (hats and shirts) and email hosting services offered by Champion Audi, and that such [h]yperlinks create no liability for [him]. Appellant's Br. at 50. However, even if D'Amato's intention was in fact non-commercial (which it does not appear to be), the issue is whether his actions had a commercial effect. We have stated that the proper inquiry is not one of intent. . . . If consumers are confused by an infringing mark, the offender's motives are largely irrelevant. Taubman Co. v. Webfeats, 319 F.3d 770, 775 (6th Cir. 2003) (internal citations omitted). Even minimal advertisements constitute use of the owner's trademark in connection with the advertising of the goods, which the Lanham Act proscribes. Id. Further, the record shows that the URL for the Boutique and Services webpage was www.audisport.com/Boutique.htm, which would likely lead a customer to believe that the goods were part of D'Amato's website. In addition, entirely separate from the merchandise, www.audisport.com made advertising space available to sponsors. Thus, he was attempting to directly profit from Audi's good will. 51 D'Amato also asserts a defense of fair use, which means that he used the mark for a purpose other than that for which the mark is typically used. The Supreme Court has held that once a plaintiff shows a strong likelihood of confusion, the defendant may offer evidence rebutting the plaintiff's evidence, or simply raise the fair use defense. The Court stated that all the defendant needs to do is to leave the factfinder unpersuaded that the plaintiff has carried its own burden on that point. KP Permanent Make-Up, Inc. v. Lasting Impression, Inc., 543 U.S. 111, 120, 125 S.Ct. 542, 160 L.Ed.2d 440 (2004). Even when we construe the facts in a light most favorable to D'Amato, Audi has shown that there is a clear likelihood of confusion based on D'Amato's use of the Audi Trademarks. D'Amato has presented no evidence to rebut this finding. All D'Amato mentions in his brief regarding his fair use defense is that he submitted an affidavit that illustrated his 3 instances using the name Audi as a descriptive term for `source of Audi Racing,' in disclaimers `not associated with Audi AG,' in the news articles and to describe the pictures given to him. Appellant's Br. at 56. This information is irrelevant, and fails to address the many commercial uses of www.audisport.com. Thus, we find that under KP Permanent Make-Up, Audi has carried its burden to disprove fair use, and D'Amato's defense fails.