Trader Joe's Co. v. Michael Hallatt

This trademark infringement case turns on the extraterritorial .reach of the Lan-ham Act. It is uncontested that Defendant Michael Norman Hallatt purchases Trader Joe’s-branded goods in Washington state, transports them to Canada, and resells them there in a store he designed to mimic a Trader Joe’s store. Trader Joe’s sued for trademark infringement and unfair competition under the Lanham Act and Washington state law. The district court recognized that the Lanham Act can apply to conduct that occurs abroad, but it dismissed the Lanham Act claims for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction after concluding that Hallatt’s allegedly infringing activity takes place in Canada, and that Trader Joe’s did not adequately explain how Hallatt’s activity impacts American commerce. The district court dismissed Trader Joe’s’ state law claims for similar reasons.

We affirm in part and reverse in part. Consistent with recent case law from the Supreme Court and our court, we hold that the extraterritorial reach of the Lan-ham Act raises a question relating to the merits of a trademark claim, not to federal courts’ subject-matter jurisdiction. On the merits, we conclude that Trader Joe’s…