LOS ANGELES -- Pomegranate juice maker Pom Wonderful LLC cannot stop a smaller rival from selling a pomegranate-flavored energy drink with a similar name, a federal court has ruled, according to a Reuters report.
It was the second time Pom Wonderful has failed to obtain an injunction against the energy drink labeled "pom," made by Pur Beverages LLC, in an ongoing trademark dispute.
U.S. District Judge Margaret Morrow in Los Angeles said in her ruling that Pom did not deserve an injunction because it could not show it would be harmed without one.
Pur Beverages founder Robert Hubbard told Reuters that Pom "poked the wrong company when they filed this frivolous suit against my company."
A spokesperson for Loa Angeles-based Pom declined to comment to the news agency.
Pom sued Hubbard in 2013 for trademark infringement, saying consumers would be deceived into thinking Hubbard's energy drink is associated with Pom Wonderful.
Morrow first denied Pom's request for an injunction in January 2014, ruling that Pom was unlikely to show shoppers would be confused by the rival product, and therefore unlikely to succeed in the case.
But in December, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena, Calif., overturned that ruling, noting the products have similar names and are marketed to a similar set of consumers.
On remand, Morrow said that in order for her to impose a sales ban, Pom must also present evidence that it would be "irreparably harmed" if an injunction were not put in place.
Pom said that its reputation as a health-conscious brand would suffer if it were associated with Hubbard's beverage, but Morrow called those arguments "speculative" and not supported by evidence, said the report.
Los Angeles-based Pom (the company is now called The Wonderful Co.) began using the "POM" trademark for beverages in 2002, and has sold more than 190 million bottles of pomegranate juice.
Pur is based in Bloomington, Minn. It makes acai berry, pomegranate and raspberry low-calorie healthy and energy drinks.
The case is Pom Wonderful LLC v. Hubbard et al, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, No. 13-cv-6917.
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