On August 12, 2019, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled that Smartling should pay Easyling US$4,009.10 in costs after Easyling had been cleared of trademark infringement and unfair competition charges earlier this year.
On June 12, after a 6-day trial, a federal jury sitting in Boston unanimously rejected the claims of venture capital funded Smartling, Inc. against independent startup Skawa Innovation, Ltd. for trademark and trade dress infringement and unfair competition. In one of the first cases of its kind to advance to trial, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts considered whether the ‘look and feel’ of a website can constitute protectable trade dress. Smartling’s allegations of trade dress infringement were fully repudiated by the jury.
The case is styled as Smartling v. Skawa Innovation, Ltd., Civil Action No. 14-cv-13106-ADB, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.