Germany-based footwear and apparel brand Puma and Brooks Sports, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, have reached a settlement in running shoe patent and trademark infringements disputes.
The resolution comes after both companies filed motions to dismiss their respective lawsuits with prejudice, ensuring that they cannot be re-opened, as reported by Reuters.
The legal contention began when Puma filed a lawsuit against Brooks in 2022.
Puma claimed that Brooks’ advertising campaign for its running shoes, which used the term “Nitro,” infringed upon Puma’s rights to the name associated with its own line of competing footwear.
Puma’s lawsuit also accused Brooks of copying its proprietary foam-moulding technology in Brooks’ Aurora BL running shoes.
Brooks denied these accusations.
The company countered that the use of “Nitro” was purely descriptive of the nitrogen-infused midsoles featured in its shoes.
The dispute escalated when Puma initiated another legal action in Seattle in June 2024, alleging that Brooks’ Hyperion running shoes breached several Puma patents.
Brooks dismissed this claim as a “baseless action,” interpreting it as an attempt to gain leverage amidst the ongoing trademark dispute.
In September 2024, Brooks also launched its own lawsuit against Puma in a Virginia federal court.
This was to receive a judicial declaration that its Glycerin running shoes did not violate any Puma patents.
A recent filing indicates that this case has also been settled in principle.
Brooks also faced a trademark infringement lawsuit brought by Skechers USA in Los Angeles in 2022.
Skechers argued that Brooks’ use of the numeral “5” on some running shoes could potentially cause confusion with Skechers’ own “S” logo.
In December 2024, Puma selected Sitoo as its partner to enhance store operations worldwide, aiming to offer a consistent shopping experience to its customers.
“Puma and Brooks Sports settle running-shoe trademark dispute ” was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand.
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