Tristar Products, Inc. has sued Telebrands Corp. and Emson, claiming infringement of Copper Chef cookware patents.
The suits, filed in federal District Court for New Jersey, allege Telebrands infringes three design patents and trade dress associated with Tristar’s Copper Chef square pan; and Emson infringes two of those patents and trade dress.
Tristar seeks a preliminary injunction to prevent further sales of Telebrands’ Red Copper square pan and Emson’s Gotham Steel square pan.
Telebrands officials said in a prepared statement it has filed a request with the United States Patent and Trade Office to invalidate TriStar’s Square Pan design patent based on “very close” prior art. “We know that this suit is without merit and that we are not infringing on any patent,” Telebrands said in the statement. Telebrands also alleges TriStar’s trade dress claim is without merit because the pan’s design, according to Telebrands, is functional and not distinctive.
Emson officials did not respond at presstime to requests for comment.