District Re/Max North Central, Inc. v. Cook
Opinion of the Court
ORDER
This successive appeal arises from a summary judgment in favor of Re/Max North Central, Inc. (“Re/Max”). When this case was last before this Court, we reviewed the district court’s decision to grant Re/Max a preliminary injunction against Patricia Cook’s continued use of Re/Max’s marks and logos. In affirming the court’s decision, we concluded that Re/ Max demonstrated that (1) it would likely succeed on the merits, (2) it would suffer irreparable injury if the injunction was not granted, and (3) the trial judge had carefully and properly weighed the harm each party would likely suffer and, nonetheless, found that Cook failed to establish that she would suffer irreparable harm. Re/Max North Central, Inc. v. Cook, 272 F.3d 424, 433 (7th Cir. 2001). On this return trip Cook asks this Court to review whether the district court’s granting of Re/Max’s motion for summary judgment was proper. We hold that it was.
I. BACKGROUND
In 1993, Cook and Re/Max entered into a franchise agreement that gave Cook the right to operate a Re/Max real estate office for a renewable five year term and required, as a condition for renewal, that Cook hire five sales associates by mid-1996. On May 1, 1998, Re/Max mailed Cook a notice of termination citing her failure to meet the sales associate hiring quota as the reason for termination.
In a February 17, 1999, letter to Cook, Re/Max acknowledged that Cook had cured her default by hiring the requisite number of sales associates
In October of 2000, Re/Max filed suit against Cook under the Lanham Act
II. DISCUSSION
This Court reviews the district court’s grant of Re/Max’s motion for summary judgment de novo. Albiero v. City of Kankakee, 246 F.3d 927, 931 (7th Cir. 2001). Summary judgment is proper when there are no genuine issues of material fact and the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Id. Before the district court, Cook argued that Re/Max’s motion for summary judgment should have been denied because Re/Max had committed two violations of the WFDL. Cook first claimed that Re/Max’s year 2000 franchise agreement, which was tendered to Cook for her signature in March of 2000, changed the competitive circumstances of Cook’s dealership. Cook also alleged that Re/Max had not provided Cook with 60 days to cure her default after giving her notice in January of 2000 that she was in default for faffing to renew her franchise contract. The district court rejected both arguments and Cook has abandoned them in her current appeal. Instead, Cook claims that Re/Max was obligated to provide her with an opportunity to renew her franchise under the 1998 agreement because the 1998 agreement was the form of Re/Max’s franchise contract on February 17, 1999-the date Re/ Max acknowledged that Cook had cured her default by hiring five sales associates. By faffing to offer her the 1998 agreement, Cook contends that Re/Max violated the WFDL, specifically Wis. Stat. § 135.03,
Moving on to Re/Max’s cross-appeal of the damage award, this Court re-views the adequacy of monetary relief awarded under the Lanham Act and a denial of attorneys’ fees for an abuse of discretion. BASF Corp. v. Old World Trading Co., Inc., 41 F.3d 1081, 1092, 1099 (7th Cir. 1994). Re/Max argues that the district court should have found that Cook’s infringement on Re/Max’s marks was willful and deliberate, thus justifying an award of treble damages and attorneys’ fees. Re/Max’s argument ignores that, “The discretion given by the Lanham Act
Affirmed
. Not only had Cook failed to meet the quota, she was the only sales associate in the office.
. Article 6.D of the 1993 contract dictated the terms under which Cook's franchise operated as of May 1, 1998:
If Franchisee continues to operate the Franchise after the end of the initial period ... without proper renewal and with the written consent of Subfranchisor, Franchisee shall be deemed to be operating on a month to month basis under the terms and conditions of the agreements then used by Subfranchisor for granting of new franchises within the state....
. To cure her default, Cook hired several family members as sales associates.
. 15U.S.C. § 1051, etseq.
. Wis. Stat. § 135.03 is entitled "Cancellation and alteration of dealerships,” and provides, "No grantor, directly or through any officer, agent or employee, may terminate, cancel, fail to renew or substantially change the competí
. The Lanham Act states, "In assessing damages the court may enter judgment, according to the circumstances of the case, for any sum above the amount found as actual damages, not exceeding three times such amount.... The court in exceptional cases may award reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing party.” 15 U.S.C. § 1117(a).
. Article 17 of the 1993 agreement states, “If Franchisee defaults in the performance of its obligations under this agreement, Franchisee shall pay to Subfranchisor, upon demand by Subfranchisor, the costs and expenses, including reasonable attorney’s fees, incurred by Subfranchisor, as a result of enforcing the provisions of this agreement.”
. Re/Max cites only the Fifth Circuit case of McDonald’s Corp. v. Watson, 69 F.3d 36 (5th Cir. 1995), in support of its argument that it is contractually entitled to attorneys’ fees. Watson, however, does not strengthen Re/Max’s position because it holds that, "The district court abuses its discretion if it awards contractually-authorized attorneys' fees under circumstances that make the award inequitable or unreasonable or fails to award such fees in a situation where inequity will not result.” Id. at 45-46. The district court concluded that because Cook validly contested the abrogation of the franchise and it was undisputed that her loss of the right to use Re/Max’s trademark would cost Cook roughly
Reference
- Full Case Name
- DISTRICT RE/MAX NORTH CENTRAL, INC v. Patricia COOK, f/d/b/a Re/Max Lake and Country, Cross-Appellee
- Cited By
- 3 cases
- Status
- Published