Focus Products Group v Kartri Sales (Fed. Cir., September 30, 2025) 2023-1446

This episode is about an opinion from the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, decided on September 30, 2025, concerning a complex intellectual property dispute between Focus Products Group International, LLC (and several related entities, collectively Appellees) and Kartri Sales Co., Inc. and Marquis Mills, International, Inc. (Appellants). The case centers on allegations that the Appellants infringed several utility patents, the HOOKLESS® trademark, the EZ ON trademark, and the trade dress associated with the Appellees' "hookless" shower curtains. The Federal Circuit partially affirmed the denial of motions to transfer venue and an "unclean hands" defense, but also reversed key findings of patent and trademark infringement and vacated the determinations on trade dress infringement, willful infringement, and the awarded attorneys' fees, remanding the case for further proceedings. The court's decision hinged on specific interpretations of patent claims, issues of trademark standing, and the functionality of the asserted trade dress features.

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