Lucie Bilodeau v. The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified On Schedule A

SEALED TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER Signed by the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt on 3/1/2024. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) (Entered: 03/01/2024)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: Plaintiff's ex parte motion for entry of a temporary restraining order, a temporary asset restraint, expedited discovery and service of process by email and electronic publication 15 is granted. Plaintiff's written submissions establish that if defendants were informed of this proceeding before a TRO could issue, assets would likely be redirected, defeating plaintiff's interests in identifying defendants, stopping the infringement, and obtaining an accounting. The Court finds that (1) the submitted evidence establishes a likelihood of success on the merits (including evidence of active infringement and sales into Illinois); (2) the harm to plaintiff is irreparable and cannot be fully compensated by money damages; (3) an injunction is in the public interest because of the consumer confusion caused by counterfeit goods and infringement interferes with Plaintiff's ability to control its intellectual property; and (4) there is no countervailing harm to defendants from an order directing them to stop infringement. Electronic service of process does not violate any treaty and is consistent with due process because it is an effective way to communicate with these online marketplace defendants. Expedited discovery is warranted to identify defendants and implement the asset freeze. If any defendant were to appear and object, the Court will revisit the asset freeze, joinder, and personal jurisdiction. A $1,000 bond is sufficient to secure the injunctive relief. Enter Sealed Temporary Restraining Order. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) (Entered: 03/01/2024)

MINUTE entry before the Honorable LaShonda A. Hunt: Plaintiff's motion for leave to file under seal 13 is granted. Schedule A 2, Amended Schedule A 12, and Exhibit 2 to the Declaration of Lucie Bilodeau 17 shall remain sealed until further court order. Plaintiff names 38 defendants in this single case and seeks ex parte TRO relief against each of them 15 . However, after reviewing the complaint 1, the Court questions whether plaintiff has established sufficient grounds for joinder of all defendants under Fed. R. Civ. P. 20(a)(2). See Estee Lauder Cosmetics, Ltd. v. P'ships and Unincorporated Ass'ns Identified on Schedule "A," 334 F.R.D. 182 (N.D. Ill. 2020); Art Ask Agency v. Individuals, Corps. Ltd. Liab. Cos., P'ships and Unincorporated Ass'ns Identified on Schedule "A," 21-cv-06197, 2021 WL 5493226 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 23, 2021); Bose Corp. v. P'ships and Unincorporated Ass'ns Identified on Schedule "A," 334 F.R.D. 511 (N.D. Ill. 2020). By 2/21/24, Plaintiff is ordered to file a supplemental memorandum that refers to specific facts alleged in its filings and provides citations to specific screenshots associated with each Amended Schedule A defendant to demonstrate that joinder is proper. Alternatively, by the same deadline, Plaintiff may file under seal a Second Amended Schedule A with a subset of the defendants and an amended declaration that explains how each of these defendants is properly joined with each other. Any amended declaration must attach labeled exhibits that contain screenshots or other information specific only to the defendants listed on the Second Amended Schedule A. Plaintiff's motion for leave to file excess pages 14 is granted. The motion for a TRO 15 will remain under advisement until the joinder issue is resolved. No appearance is necessary on 2/13/24. Emailed notice. (cdh, ) (Entered: 02/05/2024)