On March 23, 2015 Scott Slavick's article, "Laches: We Don' Need No Shrinking Laches," was published on InsideCounsel.com.
The TTAB roiled the waters for applying laches in trademark disputes in late January, says Scott Slavick in his latest piece on InsideCounsel.com. In Ava Ruha Corp. d/b/a Mother's Market & Kitchen v. Mother's Nutritional Center, Inc., Cancellation Nos. 92056067 and 92056080 (January 29, 2015) [precedential], the Board determined that laches can succeed as a defense even if only a short period has elapsed from a mark's publication to asserting infringement.
The ruling may complicate future uses of this affirmative defense in cases where the timeframe for bringing an infringement claim is unclear, says Slavick. His article, "We Don't Need No Shrinking Laches," teases out the implications of the ruling with regard to establishing the time period from which a decision on laches begins. In a forthcoming second piece on the ruling, Slavick will address the concept of progressive encroachment.
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