A federal judge in Massachusetts this week threw out the majority of an $11 million trade dress verdict that was awarded to Sterilite Corp., and gave the plastic manufacturer a deadline to decide whether to accept a reduced award or submit to a new trial for reputational harm claims. In April, a jury awarded Sterilite a $16.2 million verdict against Olivet International Inc., consisting of $11 million in damages for the defendant's willful infringement of the trade dress of storage cabinets and drawers and $5.2 million for lost profits for wastebasket lids. The jury divided the $11 million portion into two categories: $2.6 million for lost profits and $8.3 million for goodwill damages. While Olivet did not contest the $5.2 million portion, the defendant took issue with the goodwill damages award based on a lack of supporting evidence. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Julia E. Kobick for the District of Massachusetts granted Olivet's remittitur request for the goodwill damages attributed to reputational damage to Sterilite's brand. Kobick said remittitur was warranted because the amount was speculative and not supported by experts or testimony at the trial. The court offered Sterilite two options—accept the sharply reduced award or return to trial solely on the question of how the infringement affected the company's goodwill. "The evidence at trial supported, and Olivet does not contest, that Olivet’s trade dress infringement harmed Sterilite’s reputation," Kobick said. "Customer complaints and witness testimony demonstrated that Sterilite’s brand suffered from customer confusion over Olivet’s inferior cabinets and drawers. [...] Rather than challenge the jury’s finding of reputational harm, Olivet contends that the amount the jury awarded Sterilite for loss of goodwill—$8,343,289—is unsupported by the evidence or reasonable inferences from that evidence and is instead based solely on speculation or conjecture. On this, the court agrees with Olivet. Not a single witness testified about the approximate dollar amount of Sterilite’s lost goodwill or how that amount could be calculated." The court's decision was not a complete loss for Sterilite. Kobick said the company could walk away with an over $12.3 million award, but only if it accepts remittitur. Kobick said the court would double the $2.66 million lost-profits award, now closer to $2.75 million post-verdict, to both accommodate Sterilite's "enhanced damages" request and account for the reputational harm the jury could not quantify. The lost profits and enhanced damages would be combined with the uncontested $5.2 million award, recalculated as $6.8 million post-verdict. The company will have until Dec. 23 to decide, the court said. Sterilite sued Olivet in 2022 after discovering that Walmart stopped selling its plastic storage bins and instead began selling Olivet's nearly identical containers. During the trial, an Olivet executive admitted Walmart asked it to match the look and design of Sterilite's products. Sterilite argued that Olivet interfered with its lengthy business partnership with Walmart by supplying the copycat products for a lower price. An Olivet executive acknowledged that the company offered to sell its products at the retailer at a lower price during the trial, the opinion said. In its motion for enhanced damages, Sterilite argued customer confusion hurt its brand and pointed to reviews and complaints of customers blaming it for defects in Olivet's products. Sterilite said the reputational harm from Olivet's conduct was apparent, even if specific numbers were not highlighted during the trial, the opinion said. Kobick disagreed with the company, saying the $8.3 million award needed an evidentiary basis. The court highlighted that no witnesses quantified Sterilite's goodwill value before or after the infringement or advised the jury how to calculate it. The court also noted the awarded amount for goodwill damages was larger than Sterilite's total request for lost profits. "Olivet has accordingly met its substantial burden to show that, when viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to Sterilite, the jury’s loss of goodwill damages award is excessive, speculative and unsupported by the record," Kobick wrote. "The appropriate remedy is to remit the $8,343,289 awarded to Sterilite for loss of goodwill. [...] Sterilite’s damages award for its cabinets and drawers is therefore remitted to the maximum amount supported by the evidence ... Sterilite may reject this remittitur and opt for a new trial on the issue of goodwill damages only." Charlotte Geaghan-Breiner of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr represented Sterilite and did not return Law.com's request for comment. Anthony F. LoCicero and Brian A. Comack of Amster, Rothstein & Ebenstein did not return Law.com's request for comment on behalf of Olivet. Attorneys with Goldberg Segalla, among other firms, also represented the defendant.