A Texas state court jury ruled Monday that an Austin whiskey company’s use of the “Landry” name did not cause a likelihood of confusion with a conglomerate of hospitality brands owned by Houston billionaire Tilman Fertitta.
The jury delivered its verdict around 12:30 p.m. after deliberating for more than five hours, starting on Friday evening. Judge Beau A. Miller of Harris County District Court noted that the jury had sent him three questions early on Monday during the process.
The decision cleared defendant Zach Landry and his companies, Landry Distilling Inc. and Landry Distillery LLC, of a Texas common law trademark infringement suit filed by Fertitta’s Landry LLC.
The jury ruled that the Landry’s LLC mark was not famous in Texas before Zach Landry launched his business, though it did find the mark was famous in the Houston area. Despite this, the jury concluded that Zach Landry’s use of the name did not create a risk of diluting Landry’s LLC’s mark.
The verdict form did not require the jury to consider Zach Landry’s intent when selecting the name for his company.
