Bourdeau Brothers v. ITC
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
444 F.3d 1317 (2006)
Deere & Company (plaintiff) manufactured forage harvesters both in the U.S. and Europe; some U.S.-made harvesters were built solely for the European market and differed from the North American models in lighting, warning labels, safety decals, hitch compatibility, and manual language. Bourdeau Brothers, Inc. (defendant) imported some of these European-market harvesters for resale in the United States. Deere complained to the International Trade Commission (the commission) that this importation created unlawful gray-market goods infringing Deere's trademark; the commission ruled for Deere, and Bourdeau appealed.
Whether a trademarked good may be an unlawful gray-market good even though it was manufactured in the United States.