Hollander manages the international trademark portfolios for clients such as Francis Ford Coppola Industries, Chicken of the Sea International, 24 Hour Fitness USA Inc., and ADP Payroll Inc.
“I do a lot of proactive enforcement to prevent the trademark dilution of these big brands,” she said.
For more than 20 years, she’s defended the well-known canned tuna brand, Chicken of the Sea, its mermaid logo and its jingle: “Ask any mermaid you happen to see… / What’s the best tuna? / Chicken of the Sea.” She’s seen it all.
“A company in Oregon made a vegan replacement they called Chickpea of the Sea,” she laughed. “They filed a trademark application for it. We got it withdrawn. Likely they were not surprised to hear from us.”
Currently pending is a case at the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board with a familiar theme in which a rival company tried to register a mermaid design for its canned seafood. Tri Union Seafoods Inc. dba Chicken of the Sea Int’l v. Otis McAllister Inc., 91229418 (TTAB, filed Aug. 8, 2016).
She obtained summary judgment for the Chicken of the Sea mermaid in March after an Australian company tried to register its mermaid logo. Tri Union Seafoods Inc. dba Chicken of the Sea Int’l v. Sirena Tuna Pty Ltd., 91221633 (PTAB, filed April 22, 2015).
“There are three iconic brands in this space,” Hollander said. “StarKist has Charlie, Bumble Bee has its bee, and we have the mermaid.”
Hollander also keeps busy fending off those who seek to dilute the trademarks and trade dress of Oscar-winning director Francis Ford Coppola’s privately held consumer product and services companies. They include wine, resort, food, publishing and entertainment interests.
In April, she settled one case favorably for her client in an infringement suit over wine bearing the name “Copa” and a wire netting-wrapped bottle echoing Coppola’s wine brands. GMYL LP v. Copa da Vino, 16-CV6518 (C.D. Cal., filed Aug. 30, 2016).
“There have been no glamorous parties so far,” Hollander said of her famous client. “But I do enjoy what I do.”
— John Roemer
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