Emergency One, Inc. v. American Fireeagle, Ltd

228 F.3d 531 (4th Cir. 2000)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P purchased American Eagle Fire Apparatus Co. (American Eagle), a Gainesville, Florida, fire truck manufacturer started by former E-One employees in 1985. Between 1989 and June 1992 P built about thirty-five to forty fire trucks to satisfy American Eagle's backorders as well as some new orders that P accepted after the purchase. The plant was closed shortly after June 1992. Regardless of what mark appeared on the truck itself, all invoices after the acquisition carried only P's name. By mid-1992 P no longer manufactured any new fire trucks under the AMERICAN EAGLE brand. It did use the mark to sell T-shirts, hats, tote bags, and nameplates bearing the AMERICAN EAGLE logo in 'The Fire Locker' (a gift store at the factory), by distributing that merchandise at trade shows, and by requiring that its security guards wear AMERICAN EAGLE badges on their uniforms. P had no specific plans for use of the mark when it bought the American Eagle company in 1989. In 1994 Michael Carter founded D. Carter had worked for American Eagle as a draftsman. Believing that E-One had abandoned its rights to the AMERICAN EAGLE mark, Carter designed a highly similar mark for D. D began using the eagle and flag mark in pre-manufacturing marketing of its fire trucks. P complained to D that its mark was confusingly similar. D responded that P had long since abandoned any rights it had to the AMERICAN EAGLE name and to the eagle and flag logo. In September 1995 P announced that it would begin selling its low cost, limited option fire trucks under the AMERICAN EAGLE brand. P sued D. D claimed that P had abandoned its rights to the mark by discontinuing use with an intent not to resume use in the reasonably foreseeable future. The jury found in favor of P, and the district court issued an injunction against Ds further use of the AMERICAN FIREEAGLE mark. D appealed. D argues that the court failed to instruct the jury properly.