A South Carolina-based clothing company has been ordered to pay rest stop giant Buc-ee's $850,000 to settle a trademark infringement lawsuit. Buc-ee's sued Born United, a clothing company selling merchandise that vaguely gestures to the American right, with bathing suits sporting rubber ducks in tactical gear and shirts with slogans like "Lift Hard Trust God." In its lawsuit, Buc-ee's claimed that the company used its famous beaver logo mascot in its merchandise. The Buc-ee's logo is a beaver with a red baseball cap and big buck teeth, looking up and to the right.
Born United sold a patch, titled the "Tac-Bucc," that features a beaver that looks nearly identical to the Buc-ee's logo — big buck teeth, looking in the same direction, same eyes, same nose, same heart-shaped tongue — but decked out in military fatigues and tactical gear and holding a rifle. Born United has stores in North Charleston, Summerville, and Myrtle Beach, according to the Charleston-based Post and Courier. South Carolina state Senator Tom Fernandez, a Republican, is a part-owner of the Myrtle Beach location.
He was not cited in the complaint, but he did defend the design on social media. He claimed the logo was a "parody" and was different enough to be protected under fair use. "It’s not the Buc-ee’s logo.
And it’s protected,” he wrote on Facebook last year after Buc-ee's introduced the lawsuit. He claimed at the time that Buc-ee's knows "that they'll lose this case." "They're just trying to bully Born United," he wrote. District Court Judge David Norton ultimately found that the beaver logo was synonymous with Buc-ee's brand and was protected by both common law and federal trademark protections.
In a settlement order, Born United was ordered by a judge to permanently stop using the Buc-ee's logo or any "confusingly similar" mascot in its products. The company also had to admit that it sold merchandise featuring the logo and acknowledge that it had prior knowledge of the Buc-ee's trademarks. The company must also destroy all of its products bearing the logo and take down any advertisements featuring the mascot, as well as pay Buc-ee's $850,000.
The court also ruled that if Born United violates the terms of the judgment, it will also be liable to pay Buc-ee’s and cover attorney fees. Both parties have waived their rights to appeal. As of September 8, Born United's website and its stores no longer carry the Buc-ee's merchandise.
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