Nothing innocent and cute about patent infringement: Líllébaby rocks Babybjörn cradle

A claim of alleged patent infringement has been made about the Swedish family-owned company Babybjörn and its US subsidiaries alongside 30 other child carrier manufacturers. As a result, the US International Trade Commission (‘USITC’) announced on 5 April 2019, that it would conduct a section 337 investigation (this usually involves the investigation into allegations of patent/ trade mark infringement by imported goods).

The allegations were made by the US-based company with Scandanavian values Líllébaby, who submitted a complaint last month. Líllébaby stated that Babybjörn and the other companies had imported products that infringed two of its patents. These patents covered designs for child carriers with “adaptive leg supports”.

Líllébaby and the other companies have been given 20 days from the USITC issuance of its notice of investigation, requesting the submission of their responses.

Líllébaby is seeking for the USITC to issue a general exclusion order/ limited exclusion order preventing Babybjörn and the other companies from further importing the alleged infringing products. In addition, Líllébaby is seeking cease and desist orders against the defendants.
This USITC investigation will run concurrently to an earlier lawsuit that Líllébaby filed last month against Babybjörn at the US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

Líllébaby is seeking for the district court to award treble damages for willful infringement alongside its attorney’s fees.