Pirate Joe's Closes, Settlement Reached in Trader Joe's Lawsuit
CANADA – The ongoing legal battle between Trader Joe’s and its counterfeit counterpart, Pirate Joe’s, may just well be over. The Founder of the illegitimate Canada-based retailer closed its doors earlier this week.
Pirate Joe’s made the announcement on its Facebook page, stating that it planned to close its doors on Wednesday. The New York Times reported that Pirate Joe’s officially stopped selling at 12:01 a.m. local time on Thursday.
Both sides of the lawsuit reached a settlement on Wednesday, the New York Times stated. Trader Joe’s has yet to comment on the settlement, or the case at large. Trader Joe’s first extended a cease-and-desist letter to the single-store unauthorized retailer when it opened, followed by a lawsuit that alleged trademark infringement, unfair competition, false designation of origin, and false advertising.
This announcement comes after nearly five years of a legal battle brought forth by Trader Joe’s. First opened in 2012 by Mike Hallatt, Pirate Joe’s shelves were stocked by goods purchased from the nearest Trader Joe’s in the U.S., nearly 55 miles from Vancouver.
Hallatt was banned from Trader Joe’s in order to prevent him from purchasing the goods and then reselling for his own business, but Hallatt persisted the purchases by using disguises or had other people purchase the items.
"I'm mostly relieved, I have to tell you,” said Hallatt, according to The Guardian. “Many times I’ve thought, 'I’ve got to just give this up, this is ridiculous.'"
The case was first dismissed by U.S. courts, only to be recently revived by the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Pirate Joe's and Trader Joe's were due to meet this November in court. Legal analysts noted the unique and important nature of the case, previous to this development, as the case would’ve addressed trademark concerns that had happened in Canada but with U.S. jurisdiction.
Aldi-owned Trader Joe’s has yet to expand its footprint to Canada.
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