The botanical extracts company reports that a declaratory action filed against its trademark by Creative Compounds has been dismissed by a Missouri federal court.
Sabinsa, which holds a US patent for the use of forskolin as a weight management ingredient, sent a cease and desist letter to Creative Compounds in August last year after discovering the company was selling an extract of the Coleus forskohlii root under the name Forsthin.
Sabinsa took action to stop the use of the Forsthin name and recover damages for its use.
The product is seeing strong growth in the buoyant weight loss products market. Earlier this year Sabinsa said it had expanded production of the raw material to 18 zones in India. However successful herbal ingredients are also subject to considerable competition.
Sabinsa has welcomed the dismissal of Creative Compound¹s declaratory action by a Missour court, which found it served "no purpose other than to deprive Sabinsa, the real plaintiff in this dispute, of its choice of forum".
The Declaratory JudgmentAct provides a remedy that will prevent accrual of damages and give parties threatened with liability a chance to bring an action immediately to limit its damages.
Sabinsa has also filed a lawsuit in New Jersey federal court against Creative Compounds, and that action is continuing.