Kia Motors Secures Trademark Win

Skadden secured an order in favor of clients Kia Motors Corporation and Kia Motors America, Inc. finding the automaker not liable for alleged trademark infringement and reversing an earlier verdict rendered by an advisory jury. The case, brought by Allstate Insurance Company, alleged that Kia’s “Drive Wise” sub-brand infringed on Allstate’s registered trademark “Drivewise.” In an order issued December 22, Judge James Otero of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California agreed with Skadden’s argument that Allstate’s brand is weak and entitled to little protection, that the two products do not overlap in use or function, and that the lack of any actual confusion in the marketplace shows that future confusion also was unlikely.