Also known as: unfair trades · unfair trading · unfair trade practices · unfair competition
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An inequitable business practice that misrepresents the source of goods or services and injures a competitor by appropriating its goodwill.
Ugo Ucelli sues Upstream Petroleum in federal court for copyright infringement after the company copied his technical manual. He adds a state unfair trade claim alleging the same copying allowed Upstream to misrepresent the material as its own and steal credit from Ugo. The court exercises jurisdiction over the state claim because it shares the same facts as the federal copyright action.
Upland Industries sells a lamp design that Stiffel claims copies its unpatented product. Stiffel brings a state unfair trade claim to stop the sales. The Supreme Court holds that federal patent law preempts the state claim because it would effectively extend protection beyond the patent term.
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Ursula Upton sues Ultrasonic Dynamics after a pacemaker approved by the FDA allegedly fails. She asserts a state unfair trade claim based on the device's marketing. The Court rules that the Medical Device Amendments preempt the claim because it would impose requirements different from federal standards.
Umar Underwood challenges an industry code that prohibits certain pricing practices as unfair trade. The Court strikes down the code because it was adopted under an unconstitutional delegation of legislative power to private trade groups.
Una Unger registers a distinctive green-gold color for dry-cleaning pads. Jacobson Products begins using the same color on competing pads. The Court recognizes the color as protectable trade dress that prevents unfair trade by avoiding consumer confusion over source.
Utopia Pharmaceuticals sues a consumer group for statements about product safety. The group raises an unfair trade defense. The Court applies independent appellate review to the actual malice finding because the statements touch on matters of public concern.
A federal court may hear the state claim when both arise from the same set of facts and form part of the same case or controversy. The shared nucleus of operative fact allows supplemental jurisdiction over the nonfederal claim.
Federal patent law preempts the state claim. Allowing the claim would give the equivalent of patent protection after the patent term expires or for designs never patented.
The injunction must be specific in terms and describe the prohibited acts in reasonable detail. General language is acceptable when details would require repeated modifications, but the order must still guide the defendant's conduct.
…Act does not define what constitutes an obstruction to the free flow of interstate commerce. It does not define what constitutes unfair competition. It does not define what constitutes a code of fair competition. It leaves to the President the determination of these matters. The Act provides that the President may approve a code if he…