Joseph C. Gioconda focuses his practice on litigating and counseling in the areas of anticounterfeiting, trademarks and trade dress, domain name protection, copyrights, unfair competition and false advertising.

Mr. Gioconda represents a wide range of leading multinational clients and has protected some of the most famous and valuable brands in the world. He has expertise in diverse business sectors including fashion and luxury goods, apparel, footwear, personal electronics and computers, pharmaceuticals, household consumer products, art, entertainment, media and e-commerce.

He has successfully litigated cases in many federal and state courts throughout the United States. His cases have involved temporary restraining orders, preliminary injunction hearings, jury trials and appeals. He has handled matters in the US Trademark and Copyright Offices. He has also designed and implemented global brand protection programs that span many jurisdictions.

Mr. Gioconda has lectured at Yale Law School on a variety of intellectual property topics and has been widely quoted in the legal, business and general press on trademark and anti-counterfeiting issues. He is a frequent commentator on CNN, NBC and MSNBC. He is also a member of the International Press Association. British journalist Tim Phillips profiled him in the recent book Knockoff: The Deadly Trade in Counterfeit Goods.

Mr. Gioconda's experience drafting legislation for the United States Senate Judiciary Committee has given him valuable insight into this area of law. Moreover, his experience at the United States Attorney's Office in New York has given him exposure to working closely with federal and local government officials and law enforcement agencies to achieve the seizure and destruction of articles that infringe his clients' rights. Mr. Gioconda has trained hundreds of US Customs agents to strengthen the nation’s borders against the tide of illegal imports.

On a pro bono basis, Mr. Gioconda frequently represents struggling artists, designers and actors through the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts.

Mr. Gioconda was also Special Counsel to the King's County District Attorney's office in successfully defending a jury's verdict of armed robbery on appeal.

Representative Matters

• XY Skin Care & Cosmetics v. Hugo Boss USA, Inc., trademark case relating to cologne and perfume, currently pending in federal district court in Arizona.
• La Quinta v. Quinta Real, trademark case relating to hotels currently pending in federal district court in Arizona.
• Bodum USA, Inc. v. LaCafetiere, Inc., trade dress case relating to "french press" style coffee makers, favorable summary judgment ruling granted by the Northern District of Illinois.
• Chicago Board Options Exchange, et al. v. International Securities Exchange LLC, et al., unfair competition case currently pending in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois (and adjunct copyright case currently pending in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit).
• Computer Sciences Corporation v. MMC 20/20 Software, Inc., trade secret litigation resolved in New York Supreme Court.
• Playboy Enterprises v. On-Line Entertainment, trademark jury trial in the Eastern District of New York, and successful appeal in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
• Hermès of Paris v. Lederer, successful trademark jury trial in the Southern District of New York, and successful appeal in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
• Hermès of Paris v. Pelle via Roma, successful trademark jury trial in the Southern District of New York.
• Hermès of Paris, Inc. v. Steven Stolman, preliminary injunction granted by the Eastern District of New York.
• Abert Trading v. Kipling, favorable summary judgment ruling granted by the Southern District of New York.
• Hermès of Paris v. Brueton, preliminary injunction granted by the Eastern District of New York.
• Hermès of Paris v. Susan Sutherland, preliminary injunction granted by the District of Illinois.
• Hermès of Paris v. RKR Bags/Knockoff Shop, preliminary injunction granted by the Southern District of California.
• Norelco v. Remington, preliminary injunction hearing, Southern District of New York.

Media Recognition

Mr. Gioconda was recently quoted in the following articles:

• "Bacardi Celebrates in Rum Trademark War," Managing Intellectual Property
• "In Baltimore, A Tale of Two Bureaus," The Examiner
• "Designers Add Muscle in Battle Against Knockoffs,"National Jeweler
• "Big Business in Counterfeiting Products," Voice of America
• "Fashion Industry Copes With Designer Knockoffs," National Public Radio
• "Bag the Knockoffs!," Newsday
• "A 'Satire' of a Classic Fails to Amuse The August House of Hermès," The New York Times
• "Counterfeiter, Imitators: Fine Line," The Wall Street Journal
• "Special Report: Accessories -- or a Crime?," NBC
• "Handbag Wars," Vogue
• "Hermès Files Handbag Lawsuit," Women's Wear Daily
• "ABC TV Is Sued Over Plan for Show," The New York Times
• "Suit Sends Message to Bootleg Sellers: Knock It Off," Los Angeles Times
• "LVMH Files Suit Against Chinatown Landlord," Women's Wear Daily
• "The Fighters of the Fake Get Real," Newsday
• "Duped By Designer Doubles; Are Knockoffs Worth the Price?," Black Enterprise
• "Vuitton Sues Rival Dooney," New York Post
• "Small Win in War on Piracy," The Standard
• "'Tis The Season to Counterfeit," Baseline
• "Two Men Battle Over Right to Put California Artist's Name on Apparel," The Orange County Register
• "Playboy Set to Turn Page in Web Trial," New York Daily News
• "Ripped Off Idea?," Show Biz
• "Counterfeit Products," Voice of America
• "Jones Wins Round in Polo Contract Fight," Women's Wear Daily
• "Don’t Buy Into Online ‘Designer’ Deals," Columbia Missourian
• "Behind the Brand: Triumphs and Tragedies," Brand Channel
• "Counterfeit Conundrum," Shopping Centers Today
• "In Crimes to Come," TechRevu
• "Fighting Bogus Goods to Protect the Brand," Brandweek

Admissions

• New York
• United States Supreme Court
• United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
• United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
• United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
• United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
• United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
• United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

Memberships

• International Bar Association (IBA)
• International Trademark Association (INTA)
• International Press Association (IPA)

Publications

• "Creative Approaches to Fighting Art Forgery," New York Law Journal, October 14, 2008
• "Can Intellectual Property Laws Stem the Rising Tide of Art Forgeries?", 31 Hastings Comm. & Ent. L.J. 47 (2008)

Seminars

• INTA Roundtable, How the USPTO Treats Fraud in Trademark Applications 2009 (Host)
• Fordham Center for Law & Information Policy, Intermediaries in the Information Society Symposium 2009 (Panelist)
• Yale Mock Trial Association 2008 (Judge)
• Harper's Bazaar Anticounterfeiting Summit (Speaker)
• Art Law Conference 2007 in Milan, Italy (Speaker)