‘Fireball’ Trademark Too Weak to Bar ‘Firebull,’ but Not Generic

Sazerac Brands LLC’s ‘Fireball’ trademark isn’t a generic term for cinnamon-flavored whiskey, but is too weak to bar a distiller from registering “Bullshine Firebull,” the Federal Circuit affirmed in a precedential decision Wednesday.

Bullshine Distillery LLC failed in its bid to revive its genericness claim, as third-party use it cited involved different products and flavors, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled. But the three judge panel also said Sazerac failed to undermine the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board opinion, which found confusion between the two marks unlikely as they differed in their entirity plus “Fireball” had ...