• January 8, 2008

Procter & Gamble has filed a lawsuit against Santa Clarita, Calif.-based Blue Cross Laboratories for trademark infringement of its Herbal Essences brand.

In the suit--filed Monday in the U.S. Federal District Court for the Southern District of Ohio in Cincinnati--P&G claims private labeler Blue Cross Laboratories is distributing look-alike Herbal Essences shampoo and conditioner products under the name Herbal Passion to dollar-store outlets.

P&G is asking that Blue Cross Laboratories be ordered to stop distributing the infringing products, recall the existing inventory from store shelves, notify retailers to impound or return all products and destroy the bottle molds.

Procter & Gamble relaunched the Herbal Essences brand last year. "We believe this is a clear case of infringement designed to take advantage of consumer loyalty and business growth that P&G developed through the reinvention of its Herbal Essences brand," said Jim Johnson, P&G chief legal officer, in a release.

--Karl Greenberg