ITC rules in favor of Deere: at issue were infringement of Deere's green and yellow trademarks and gray market distribution of forage harvesters and telehandlers.

Implement & Tractor, September, 2004 by Bassam N. Ibrahim

In January 2003, Deere & Company ("Deere") filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission ("ITC") alleging illegal importation from Europe and China of goods infringing its famous trademarks registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Deere's federal trademark registrations at issue were for the JOHN DEERE trademark, the leaping deer trademark and its three trademark registrations for aspects of its green and yellow color scheme on its agricultural products.

Two classes of infringers, known as Respondents at the ITC, were named in the complaint. First, Deere alleged that Chinese manufacturers and their US importers and distributors infringed Deere's green and yellow trademarks by importing green tractors with yellow wheels and yellow...