Whirlpool Keeps KitchenAid Look-Alike Ban as High Court Passes

Whirlpool Corp.‘s victory over a China-based seller of KitchenAid mixer look-alikes will stand after the US Supreme Court declined to analyze whether courts must consider personal jurisdiction before issuing injunctions.

Shenzen Sanlida Electrical Co. argued its assets were wrongly frozen without it having been properly served Whirlpool’s complaint. The high court has previously held that a court can freeze property “once personal jurisdiction of a party is obtained,” but mere notice of the suit doesn’t suffice to establish jurisdiction, it argued.

The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit’s ruling was “dangerous,” Shenzen Sanlida told justices, because it ...