By Sharon Feiereisen

 
After their recent loss to LVMH, which had them ordered by a French court to pay millions to the fashion giant, eBay has caught a break.

 

Tiffany & Co. has been entangled in a legal battle about counterfeiting with eBay for years now. The luxury jeweler claims that its goods are improperly being sold through the Web site, but unfortunately for Tiffany & Co., U.S. District Judge Richard Sullivan in Manhattan ruled in favor of eBay in a 66-page ruling issued on Monday, July 14th.

 

The federal judge said that it is the trademark owner’s burden to police its trademark, adding that Tiffany failed in its burden to prove claims that eBay was liable for trademark infringement and dilution, false advertising, and unfair competition for facilitating the sale of counterfeit goods.

 

For their part, eBay claimed that the site is merely a service through which buyers and sellers connect and cannot be held responsible for counterfeit items because it never physically possesses them. eBay continued their defense by saying that they immediately remove items that are brought to their attention as being counterfeit.