Venable Secures Seizure Order to Prevent Counterfeiting of Zig-Zag Cigarette Paper Products

Team led by New York IP/brand protection partner Marcella Ballard advances "zero tolerance" policy toward bogus goods by Zig-Zag parent North Atlantic Trading Co.

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Venable LLP

Jul 09, 2015, 01:06 ET

NEW YORK, July 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- North Atlantic Trading Company's (NATC) attorneys at Venable LLP, led by Marcella Ballard of the firm's New York office, have successfully executed seizure orders on merchants and wholesalers found to be selling counterfeit Zig-Zag cigarette paper products.

The seizure orders are part of North Atlantic's strategy of zero tolerance against counterfeit goods imported into the US.

Marcella Ballard, Venable Intellectual Property/Brand protection partner

"North Atlantic takes intellectual property infringement seriously and will prosecute known violators to the fullest extent of the law," said Venable's Ms. Ballard, an intellectual property partner and member of the firm's brand protection group. "We have obtained three successful ex parte seizure orders to conduct successful raids on counterfeiters over the past year and will continue to actively enforce anti-counterfeiting measures against any and all violators."

Ms. Ballard's and NATC's efforts against counterfeit Zig-Zag products have in the past resulted in the seizure of businesses, significant multi-million dollar judgments, and criminal liability with federal prison sentences and deportation.

Zig-Zag cigarette paper products are a popular brand of rolling papers that originated in France. The papers, which come in five sizes, are made largely from flax, and use natural gum Arabic. They are imported and distributed in the United States and Canada by North Atlantic Trading Company, Inc.

Note: Venable LLP is an American Lawyer 100 law firm headquartered in Washington, DC, with offices in California, Delaware, Maryland, New York, and Virginia. For more information, visit www.venable.com.

Contact: Christine Till 202-344-4127 [email protected]

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SOURCE Venable LLP