Press Release
New York, NY, October 11, 2007 - The intellectual property law firm Kenyon & Kenyon (www.kenyon.com) announced today that Judge Kevin Castel for the Southern District of New York, dismissed a false advertising and antitrust lawsuit against its client, Iovate Health Sciences Research, Inc., a leading nutritional supplement company.
The suit, filed in September 2006 by Wellnx Life Sciences, Inc. (formerly known as Nxcare, Inc.) , against Iovate and Canusa Products, Inc., a publisher of bodybuilding magazines, involved allegations that the two companies had an exclusive agreement that was anti-competitive and engaged in false and misleading practices.
“The allegations…taken as true and drawing all reasonable inferences in plaintiff’s favor, fail to state a claim that defendants made any false, misleading or confusing statements or representations of fact relating to any of the parties’ goods, services or commercial activities,” wrote the Hon. P. Kevin Castel. The Court held that the “failure of the amended complaint to allege that any statement or representations were ever made by the defendants to consumers of bodybuilding publications or bodybuilding supplements renders the amended complaint inadequate to state a claim for false advertising under the Lanham Act.”
Howard J. Shire, a partner in the New York office of Kenyon & Kenyon, represented Iovate, along with associate Michael J. Freno. Schlam Stone & Dolan LLP represented Canusa Products, Inc.
A copy of the decision is attached.
About Kenyon & Kenyon LLP
Kenyon & Kenyon is consistently ranked by peers and in-house counsel as one of the top firms for IP. Since its founding in 1879, the firm has provided its worldwide clientele with litigation, prosecution, licensing and counseling services. Large and small enterprises and individuals choose Kenyon to design and implement intellectual property strategies when it matters most. The firm has offices in New York, Washington, DC and Silicon Valley.