Seattle Trademark Lawyer

On April 7, Western District Judge John Coughenour entered a default judgment and permanent injunction against Fernando Lopez, d/b/a Computer Service, for selling counterfeit Microsoft software.

The court’s factual findings illustrate Microsoft’s buy-bust process for investigating a counterfeit case. “According to Microsoft’s Complaint, Defendant Fernando Lopez, a California citizen, distributes counterfeit computer software using the Internet, through such means as the website www.craigslist.org (“Craigslist”). After Microsoft investigators purchased a counterfeit copy of Microsoft Windows XP operating system software through Defendant, Microsoft sent Defendant a cease and desist letter notifying him that the purported Microsoft Windows software he distributed was counterfeit, that he could be subject to civil liability for violation of federal copyright and trademark laws — up to $150,000 for each willful copyright infringement and up to $1,000,000 for willful trademark infringement — and that if he had any questions, he could contact Microsoft. Despite receiving the cease and desist letter on October 2, 2008, Defendant allegedly continued to distribute the counterfeit software; Microsoft investigators again purchased counterfeit copies of Windows XP from Defendant, via telephone and through direct email.”

Microsoft then sued; Mr. Lopez failed to answer; Microsoft moved for an order of default, which the court granted; and then Microsoft brought the instant motion for entry of default judgment. The court granted Microsoft’s motion, imposed a permanent injunction against Mr. Lopez, and awarded $30,000 in statutory damages under the Copyright Act. Microsoft did not seek damages under the Lanham Act.

There’s a good lesson here. Don’t sell counterfeit goods. If you do, don’t get caught. If you get caught, immediately stop. If you get sued, hire an attorney and answer the complaint. Ignoring each bit of this advice will probably result in the court’s awarding a large judgment against you, which can (and should) haunt you for a long time.

The case cite is Microsoft Corp. v. Lopez, No. 08-1743, 2009 WL 959219 (W.D. Wash. April 7, 2009) (Coughenour, J.).