In the past I reported on a dispute between Pinnacle Pizza, franchisee, and Little Caesar Enterprises (LCE), franchisor of Little Caesars pizza shops. Pinnacle Pizza invented the tagline “Hot ‘N Ready” for a particular promotional program, which was then adopted by the franchise chain. Pinnacle Pizza sued LCE, claiming that it, not LCE, owned the… Continue reading

Pinnacle Pizza was a franchisee of Little Caesar Enterprises (LCE), the corporation that manages the “Little Caesars” franchises. Pinnacle Pizza created a promotional program for its stores called “Hot ‘N Ready,” which guaranteed a hot, medium pepperoni pizza for $4 within five minutes of the order every Tuesday. There was some discussion about who conceived… Continue reading

Pinnacle Pizza Co. v. Little Caesar Enterprises, Inc., does some contract interpretation on ownership of trademarks in a franchise relationship – not the trademarks originally licensed, but a trademark created by a franchisee. Pinnacle Pizza was a franchisee for Little Caesar Enterprises pizza (I’ll use “Little Caesar” to refer to the company; the trademark is… Continue reading