On May 20, 2019, the Supreme Court
handed down an 8 -1 opinion in MissionProduct Holdings, Inc. v. Tempnology, LLC, holding that a debtor’s
rejection of a trademark license under Bankruptcy Code § 365 does not revoke
the licensee’s trademark license or deprive the licensee of its rights to use
the trademark. Instead, the Court
concluded that the debtor’s rejection has the same effect as a breach of
contract outside bankruptcy; it does not rescind the contract and all rights
that would ordinarily survive a breach of contract remain in place.
This case arises from a licensing
agreement between a debtor/licensor, Mission Product Holdings, Inc. (Mission)
and Tempnology, LLC (Tempnology), for the use of Tempnology’s trademarks (logos
and labels for “Coolcore”) on manufactured clothing and accessories. The agreement provided Mission with an
exclusive license to distribute Coolcore products in the United States and a
non-exclusive license to use the trademarks in the United States and around the
world. The agreement was set to expire
in July, 2016. In September 2015,
Tempnology filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and asked the court to allow it
to reject the Mission licensing agreement under Section 365.
Section 365 of the Bankruptcy Code
enables a debtor to “reject any executory contract” – meaning a contract that
neither party has finished performing, thus allowing a debtor to decide whether
a particular contract is a good deal for the estate going forward. This is especially important when a debtor is reorganizing
under Chapter 11. Rejecting the contract
constitutes a breach of contract, giving the licensee a pre-petition claim
against the estate for damages as a result of the nonperformance.
In
this case, the Bankruptcy Court held that even though Section 365 allows, for
example, a tenant to stay and pay rent for the duration of a property lease
despite a bankrupt landlord rejecting the lease, or allows certain intellectual
property (e.g. patent) licenses to remain in place despite rejection, Section
365 does not reference trademark licenses and, therefore, does not apply to the
facts of this case. The Bankruptcy
Appellate Panel (BAP) reversed, noting that while a rejection can convert a
debtor’s unfilled obligations to a pre-petition claim, it does not vaporize the
counterparty’s rights. The First Circuit
Court of Appeals rejected the BAP’s reasoning and reinstated the Bankruptcy Court’s
decision to terminate the license, finding that because special features of
trademark law include licensors monitoring and exercising quality control over
goods associated with their trademark, if a licensor is forced to carry on
these monitoring activities, it would frustrate “Congress’s principal aim in
providing for rejection,” which is to release the debtor’s estate from
burdensome obligations.
Interestingly, the Supreme Court disagreed
with the First Circuit and agreed with the BAP, concluding that Congress
intended, except in very limited cases, for parties to retain rights after
rejection of an executory contract, and trademark licenses should not be any different. Thus, rejection of a trademark license in
bankruptcy is treated as a breach, not a rescission. As to the concerns about ongoing monitoring,
the Supreme Court found that while Congress considered the burdens on the debtors
when certain contracts are rejected, it also weighed the “legitimate interests
and expectations of the debtor’s counterparties.” In the case of trademark
licenses, the ruling clarifies that the legitimate interests and expectations
of the trademark licensee outweigh the burdens on the debtor, and the licensees
rights remain in place after rejection.
Authored by:
Jennifer T. Poochigian
