Chubby Gorilla v. Schedule A Defendants: Default Judgment on Unicorn Bottle Design Patents
Chubby Gorilla, Inc. secured a default judgment in 105 days against a cohort of unnamed e-commerce sellers operating on Alibaba and other platforms, winning permanent injunctions and asset freezes covering four design patents and its distinctive Unicorn Trade Dress for cylindrical bottles with tapered caps.
Chubby Gorilla’s rapid default win against Alibaba counterfeit network
Filed 18 December 2024 before Judge Sara L. Ellis in the Northern District of Illinois, this case pits Chubby Gorilla, Inc. — a maker of distinctive cylindrical squeeze bottles — against a cohort of anonymous e-commerce sellers identified only as ‘The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified in Schedule A.’ Chubby Gorilla asserted four design patents (USD991,037; USD999,637; USD907,500; USD908,500) and its Unicorn Trade Dress, a cylindrical bottle-and-cap combination where the cap concavely tapers to a flat top, across storefronts operating primarily through Alibaba-connected platforms.
The case closed on 2 April 2025 via default judgment — a plaintiff win obtained because no defendant appeared or answered within the permitted window. The court found willful design patent infringement under 35 U.S.C. § 271, willful trade dress infringement under 15 U.S.C. § 1125, false designation of origin, and violation of Illinois’s Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Damages were ordered under 35 U.S.C. § 289 (infringer’s profits), floored at $250 per defendant, with all remaining account balances seized. Third-party processors — Alibaba, Alipay, PayPal, Stripe, LianLian, and Payoneer — were ordered to release frozen funds within 14 days.
Resolution in 105 days is consistent with the accelerated Schedule A docket practice in N.D. Illinois, where TROs and asset freezes are routinely entered ex parte before defendants are served. The public record does not disclose the total number of Schedule A defendants or aggregate funds recovered, leaving the true monetary scale uncertain. What is notable is the breadth of relief: permanent injunctions reach not only the named storefronts but any ‘colorably different’ products, and supplemental proceedings under FRCP 69 remain authorised until Chubby Gorilla is made whole.
Filing to Default Judgment in 105 days
105-day resolution — faster than the median Schedule A counterfeit case in N.D. Ill.
Default judgment granted: what the order means for both sides
Default judgment: allegations deemed admitted without trial
Where defendants fail to answer or appear, a court may enter default judgment under FRCP 55. All well-pleaded allegations in Chubby Gorilla’s complaint are treated as admitted. The court still independently assessed jurisdiction and found personal jurisdiction over foreign e-commerce sellers targeting Illinois consumers — a threshold step that can be contested but was uncontested here.
FRCP 55 — no merits contestChubby Gorilla secures injunctions, asset seizure, and ongoing recovery rights
Chubby Gorilla obtained permanent injunctive relief barring manufacture, import, sale, or offer for sale of infringing bottles and caps across all platforms. Third-party payment processors were ordered to freeze and transfer defendant funds immediately. FRCP 69 supplemental proceedings remain available, meaning Chubby Gorilla can pursue newly discovered accounts without filing a new action — a commercially significant enforcement lever.
Permanent injunction + asset recoveryNon-appearing sellers face account closures and frozen payments
By failing to respond, the Schedule A defendants forfeited any opportunity to contest validity, claim design-around, or negotiate settlement. The order extends to any future accounts traced to the same parties. Historically, many Schedule A defendants are overseas sellers whose practical ability to comply or appeal is limited — but the injunction and fund transfer create immediate commercial consequences regardless of geographic location.
No contest — full default exposureEnforced design rights raise the cost of counterfeiting Unicorn-style bottles
A default judgment with asset seizure sends a market signal to other Alibaba-platform sellers carrying similar bottle designs. With four design patents covering the Unicorn bottle form factor, Chubby Gorilla holds overlapping IP that makes design-arounds more difficult. Processors such as PayPal and Stripe are now on actual notice, potentially accelerating future account suspensions for repeat infringers in this product category.
Deterrence signal to e-commerce counterfeitersFull party and counsel information
| Role | Name | Type | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plaintiff | Chubby Gorilla, Inc. | Company | Specialty bottle manufacturer — holder of USD991037, USD999637, USD907500, USD908500Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Defendant | The Partnerships and Unincorporated Associations Identified in Schedule A | Individual | Anonymous e-commerce sellers operating counterfeit storefronts on Alibaba and related platforms.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | Brian P. O’Donnell | Attorney | Counsel for Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | James Edward Judge | Attorney | Counsel for Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | Marko Romeo Zoretic | Attorney | Counsel for Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | Ying Chen | Attorney | Counsel for Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff counsel | Zareefa Burki Flener | Attorney | Counsel for Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff law firm | Flener IP & Business Law | Law Firm | Representing Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff law firm | Knobbe, Martens, Olson & Bear Llp | Law Firm | Representing Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Plaintiff law firm | Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP | Law Firm | Representing Chubby Gorilla, Inc.Search in Eureka ↗ |
| Presiding judge | Judge Sara L. Ellis | Judge | Illinois Northern District CourtSearch in Eureka ↗ |
Official order — verbatim text
The court’s default judgment order finds willfulness across all four causes of action — design patent infringement, trade dress infringement, false designation of origin, and Illinois deceptive trade practices — without adversarial presentation. In Schedule A cases, willfulness is typically established through plaintiff’s unrebutted evidence of intentional copying. The 35 U.S.C. § 289 damages floor of $250 per defendant combined with full account seizure suggests the court accepted Chubby Gorilla’s damages framing in its entirety, a significant outcome given that § 289 permits recovery of the infringer’s total profits from the infringing article.
USD991037, USD999637, USD907500, USD908500 — Unicorn cylindrical bottle design portfolio
The four asserted design patents — USD991,037, USD999,637, USD907,500, and USD908,500 — cover the ornamental appearance of a cylindrical bottle paired with a distinctive cap. The cap features a cylindrical portion with a diameter substantially matching the bottle body and a smooth section that concavely tapers to a flat top, creating the recognisable ‘Unicorn’ silhouette. Application numbers span two filing clusters (US29/610633, US29/614048 and US29/765561, US29/765567), suggesting a deliberate continuation strategy to capture both the original design and evolved variants.
In the squeeze-bottle and vape accessories market, the Unicorn bottle’s silhouette has become commercially distinctive — which is precisely why Chubby Gorilla also secured trade dress protection alongside design patents. The combination creates a layered enforcement architecture: invalidating one design patent does not eliminate the others or the trade dress. For competitors in personal-care, condiment, or e-liquid packaging, this portfolio signals that the Unicorn bottle form factor is heavily encumbered and warrants careful FTO review before any product launch involving a similarly shaped cylindrical bottle and cap.
Should you run an FTO against USD991037, USD999637, USD907500, and USD908500?
Any manufacturer, importer, or e-commerce seller developing cylindrical squeeze bottles or similar personal-care packaging with a tapered flat-top cap should conduct a freedom-to-operate analysis against Chubby Gorilla’s design patent portfolio before commercialisation. The Unicorn Trade Dress claim extends the risk beyond registered design patents to any bottle shape that creates consumer confusion with the characteristic concave-taper profile — a broader standard that design-around analysis alone may not capture.
PatSnap Eureka’s FTO Search Agent can map all four design patent numbers, identify their prosecution history, and surface related continuation applications that may not yet be granted. The tool also flags third-party design-arounds attempted in the cylindrical bottle category, helping R&D and product teams identify safe design corridors. Given the court’s willingness to issue ex parte TROs and freeze payment processor accounts in Schedule A actions, proactive FTO analysis is far less costly than reactive enforcement defence.
Run a freedom-to-operate analysis on USD0908500S to assess your product’s exposure
Run FTO in Eureka →Similar design patent Schedule A cases in N.D. Illinois
Browse comparable Schedule A enforcement actions in the Northern District of Illinois involving design patent and trade dress infringement on consumer product packaging.
Related patent case — similar technology
Comparable case in the same technology domain. Patent holder and defendant reached resolution after proceedings.
SettledRelated infringement action — same court
Comparable Unicorn Trade Dress (a cylindrical bottle with a cap, where the cap has a cylindrical portion having a diameter substantially similar to the bottle and a smooth portion that concavely tapers toward a flat top-adjacent infringement action. Patent enforcement dynamics analysed in depth.
Active · District CourtRelated invalidity challenge — appellate outcome
Combined invalidity and infringement action in the same technology space. Decided after substantive proceedings.
DecidedChubby Gorilla, Inc.’s broader IP enforcement history
Chubby Gorilla, Inc.’s full litigation history covering prior enforcement, licensing activity, and inter partes review proceedings.
Portfolio viewWhat this case signals for the vape and specialty bottle IP landscape
Schedule A tactics are reshaping how brand owners combat counterfeit e-commerce — this case illustrates both the speed and the limits of that approach.
Four overlapping design patents create a defensive moat worth mapping
Chubby Gorilla’s strategy of filing multiple design patent applications (USD907500, USD908500, USD991037, USD999637) covering the same product form factor is a classic layering technique. Competitors and FTO analysts should map all four to understand the full exclusionary perimeter before commercialising any similarly shaped cylindrical bottle or cap design.
Payment processor cooperation is now standard in Schedule A enforcement
Orders directing Alibaba, PayPal, Stripe, and Payoneer to freeze and transfer funds have become routine in N.D. Illinois. Any e-commerce business selling aesthetically similar bottle products on these platforms should treat this order as a template for the financial exposure they could face — even before a merits hearing.
Trade dress plus design patents: compounding infringement exposure for look-alike bottles
The concurrent assertion of the Unicorn Trade Dress alongside four design patents means that even a product that avoids one patent may still infringe the others or the trade dress. This dual-IP architecture significantly raises the cost of a successful design-around and warrants specific FTO analysis across both IP types before any bottle launch.
FRCP 69 supplemental proceedings: enforcement risk does not end at judgment
The court authorised ongoing supplemental proceedings under FRCP 69 until Chubby Gorilla recovers full damages. This means sellers who escape the initial asset freeze by operating under different aliases or payment accounts remain exposed. IP monitoring programs should track new storefronts selling Unicorn-style bottles as a proactive risk management measure.
Chubby v Partnerships — key questions answered
Chubby Gorilla asserted four design patents: USD991,037; USD999,637; USD907,500; and USD908,500, all covering the ornamental design of its Unicorn cylindrical bottle and cap. The company also asserted Unicorn Trade Dress rights covering the distinctive bottle silhouette with a concave-tapered flat-top cap.
The Schedule A defendants — anonymous e-commerce sellers — failed to answer or appear after being served via electronic publication and email, a service method the court found constitutionally adequate given the defendants’ online-only business model. Under FRCP 55, uncontested well-pleaded allegations are deemed admitted, entitling the plaintiff to default judgment.
The court awarded infringer’s profits under 35 U.S.C. § 289 from each defaulting defendant, set at a minimum of $250 per defendant but extending to all remaining funds in their financial accounts. Payment processors including Alibaba, PayPal, Stripe, LianLian, and Payoneer were ordered to transfer frozen funds to Chubby Gorilla within 14 calendar days.
Yes. The order grants Chubby Gorilla ongoing authority to pursue supplemental proceedings under FRCP 69 until full recovery is achieved. The injunction covers any ‘colorably different’ products and any additional online marketplace accounts or financial accounts linked to the defaulting defendants, effectively future-proofing the enforcement order against alias-switching.
The Unicorn Trade Dress describes the distinctive appearance of a cylindrical bottle combined with a cap that has a cylindrical portion of substantially similar diameter to the bottle and a smooth concave section tapering to a flat top. This aesthetic combination is separately protected from the design patents, meaning both IP rights must be cleared independently by any party commercialising a visually similar bottle design.
Run an FTO on cylindrical bottle designs before your next product launch
With four overlapping design patents and trade dress rights covering the Unicorn bottle form factor, the risk landscape for cylindrical squeeze bottles is complex. PatSnap Eureka’s FTO Search Agent maps the full IP perimeter and surfaces safe design corridors before costly litigation exposure arises.
PatSnap Eureka searches patents and litigation data to answer instantly.