Are you an attorney who is seeking litigation support for a case involving likelihood of confusion? Look no further than Keegan & Donato Consulting. We will work within your budget to deliver the help you need.
Located in Rye, New York, Keegan & Donato Consulting offers a wide range of services to plaintiff and defendant clients, including consultation on litigation strategy, consumer research studies, testimony in trademark and trade dress litigation, testimony at deposition and/or trial, expert reports, and rebuttal of opposing parties’ surveys when applicable.
Principals Mark Keegan and Tony Donato have 25+ years of combined experience in the consumer research field as well as extensive testimony experience. Their credentials include:
- Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School (Keegan)
- Bachelor of Arts in History from Pace University (Keegan)
- Member of the New York and Connecticut Bar Associations (Keegan)
- Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University (Donato)
- Bachelor of Arts in Politics from Ursinus College (Donato)
- Co-author of peer-reviewed journal articles (Donato)
What We Do for Our Valued Clients
Consumer surveys are important in determining whether competing marks are likely to confuse consumers, whether a descriptive mark has acquired secondary meaning, whether a mark is famous, and whether one brand’s mark is likely to cause dilution to a competing mark.
Surveys are highly susceptible to criticism, however, and the Court will scrutinize them for methodological flaws. Sample selection issues, interviewer bias, and suggestive wording may cause a judge to attribute little weight to the survey or deem some or all of the results inadmissible.
In Water Pik, Inc. v. Med-Systems, Inc., 726 F.3d 1142, 1144-50 (10th Cir. 2013), there is an extensive discussion wherein the Court excludes the defendant’s survey evidence after concluding that it “had too many methodological flaws to be of any probative value.”
In Elliott v. Google, Inc., 45 F. Supp. 3d 1156 – Dist. Court, D. Arizona (2014), the plaintiff’s surveys were determined to be inadmissible because the Court deemed them unscientific and poorly constructed. The Court also rejected the plaintiff’s survey expert as unqualified “to design a survey or to interpret survey results” [see 45 F.Supp.3d 1167-1170].
About Our Survey Methodology
At Keegan & Donato Consulting, we employ both classic survey designs and develop innovative custom survey designs to suit each client’s needs and consider methodological design among the most critical aspects of designing a consumer research study.
Some of the best practices we build into our survey designs include:
- Appropriate universe selection and sampling frame;
- Inclusion of representative, qualified respondents;
- Use of objective, non-leading questions;
- Use of procedures to reduce guessing among respondents;
- Use of procedures to minimize potential biases in data collection; and
- Full analysis and reporting of survey data.
Our industry-leading online survey software platform facilitates the programming and execution of advanced survey designs, including complex skip logic and advanced rotation and randomization of questions, answer options, and stimuli.
If you are an attorney interested in litigation support related to likelihood of confusion, contact Keegan & Donato Consulting at (914) 967-9421 to explore our affordable services.