The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a complaint by Jack Daniel’s over a dog toy that, Jack Daniel’s said, appropriates the Brown-Forman brand’s trade dress.
The folks at Jack Daniel’s office in Nashville might find some cold comfort in the fact that the brand isn’t the only victim of VIP Products creative energies. VIP has also created dog toys that mimic Mountain Dew, Amstel Light, Pabst Blue Ribbon and Stella Artois.
The high court’s reasoning? “The Bad Spaniels dog toy, although surely not the equivalent of the Mona Lisa, is an expressive work. The toy communicates a humorous message … using word play to alter the serious phrase that appears on a Jack Daniel’s bottle – ‘Old No. 7 Brand’ – with a silly message – ‘The Old No. 2’,” the appeals court decision reads. “The fact that VIP chose to convey this humorous message through a dog toy is irrelevant.”
The Supremes sent the case back to a lower court to rehear using a higher standard for parodies.