Eden Foods Wins Trademark Infringement Case

LOS ANGELES--The U.S. District Court of Central California has ruled for Eden Foods in a civil contempt case against Ronald Lawrence d/b/a Eden Anti-Aging Formulas. Under the order, entered Nov. 22, Lawrence was found in civil contempt of court for failing to comply with the provisions of a December 1999 Consent Judgment on a trademark infringement case.

Clinton, Mich.-based Eden Foods took action against Lawrence in 1999, ultimately ending up with a Settlement Agreement and Consent Judgment, executed that November, that permanently enjoined Lawrence from all usage of the name "Eden" as a corporate or trading name or as a trademark or service mark in connection with any business/commercial service. According to Eden Foods, it found Lawrence's company promoting Eden Anti-Aging Formulas' products, including EDEN Gh1, at Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore in September 2000.

Under terms of the November 2000 court order, Lawrence is directed to deliver all existing inventory of "Eden" brand products to Eden Foods' attorney for destruction within 30 days. It also directed Lawrence to cancel his Web site domain name registration; as of Dec. 4, the Web site could not be accessed online. Finally, a hearing has been set for Feb. 12, 2001, to review possible monetary sanctions, including attorneys' fees and compensation for injury.

On Dec. 4, a spokesman for Eden Anti-Aging Formulas said he was reviewing the court decision. Lawrence was still reviewing the final order; however, his representative submitted a press release dated Oct. 26 noting that the Eden Gh1 product was named for its relation to the "biblical era of our most natural beginning." It further noted that Lawrence's company had no plans to "produce products of a similar liking to Eden Foods."

For further information, visit www.edenfoods.com.