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Government Sees $104 Million Verdict Vanish After Its Theory of Liability Is Rejected Post-Trial

Client Alert | 1 min read | 01.08.15

U.S. ex rel. Bunk v. Birkart Globalistics, an FCA case spanning twelve years and two jury trials, came to an apparent end when the district court set aside the jury's verdict and damages award of $104 million, ruling that the government's theory of liability failed as a matter of law. The government's upset "expectations" of competitive bidding was itself an insufficient ground for a finding of falsity, and the government failed to show that any of the cargo carriers bidding on the contracts "presented a claim for payment based on a prime rate that was, in fact, inflated because of Gosselin's alleged conduct" and failed to present sufficient evidence of damages.


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Client Alert | 4 min read | 12.04.25

District Court Grants Preliminary Injunction Against Seller of Gray Market Snack Food Products

On November 12, 2025, Judge King in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington granted in part Haldiram India Ltd.’s (“Plaintiff” or “Haldiram”) motion for a preliminary injunction against Punjab Trading, Inc. (“Defendant” or “Punjab Trading”), a seller alleged to be importing and distributing gray market snack food products not authorized for sale in the United States. The court found that Haldiram was likely to succeed on the merits of its trademark infringement claim because the products at issue, which were intended for sale in India, were materially different from the versions intended for sale in the U.S., and for this reason were not genuine products when sold in the U.S. Although the court narrowed certain overbroad provisions in the requested order, it ultimately enjoined Punjab Trading from importing, selling, or assisting others in selling the non-genuine Haldiram products in the U.S. market....