INTA Annual Meeting in DC

On May 6, 2012, Jeff Faucette led a table topic discussion at the International Trademark Association’s annual meeting in Washington, DC.  The topic was titled “David v. Goliath in Trademark Litigation,” and the discussion focused on the strategic issues involved when representing parties of disproportionate size and clout in trademark litigation.  For “Goliaths” in this arena, the combination of a small, sympathetic defendant and social media can create a firestorm of criticism and negative fallout.  For “Davids”, these very tools of social media can provide powerful leverage that is otherwise unavailable to a small company or individual when faced with a much larger opponent.  Jeff has represented parties on both sides of this divide, and the table topic discussion involved both in-house and outside counsel.  Participants discussed their own personal experiences with examples of this phenomenon and how trademark litigators can better navigate their clients through these types of disputes.