You be the Judge: Copycat Caskets

When walking through certain neighborhoods of New York City, I often am approached by entrepreneurs selling “brand name” items at unbelievably low prices. These allegedly designer bags, watches, DVDs and perfume may look similar to the real deal, but chances are the products are knockoffs and illegal. It’s easy to doubt the authenticity of an item yanked from a garbage bag by a guy standing on a crowded corner whispering “handbag,” but the concern over knockoffs is not necessarily limited to this type of situation: take the case of the knockoff caskets.

The York Group is a Pennsylvania casket maker which sells wood and metal caskets nationwide.
Wuxi Taihu Tractor Co. is a Chinese casket manufacturer.

In a 2006 lawsuit, State District Judge Elizabeth Ray, ordered that Wuxi place the words “Made in China” on caskets built in the Asian country and sold to U.S. distributors, as required by federal law. The judge also ordered that Wuxi cease distributing copycat caskets.

In the current case, York contends that Wuxi violated the court order by distributing “knockoff” and “look-a-like” caskets which copy York’s "hardware, design lines and paint jobs." According to York’s attorney, “this is part of a continuous, ongoing battle that all U.S. manufacturers have.”

Wuxi’s casket designer claims that he doesn’t use York caskets as a standard for his ideas. And others argue that all caskets are inherently similar and question “how many ways can you make a casket?”

Although I was unable to find images of the caskets in question, you be the judge. What do you think about protecting the design of a casket? For more information about U.S. Copyright law check out http://www.copyright.gov/; for information on U.S. Patent and Trademark Law check out http://www.uspto.gov/.