Hooper taking legal action against American Lifan?
 

This was posted last week (I just saw it today) on Hooper's website. It states something about them taking legal action against either Lifan or American Lifan.

-----
May 5, 2008

To Our Valued Customers,

As you are aware there are untrue statements made on the internet
by our supplier concerning the quality, legitimacy and legality of the
products that Hooper Imports LLC sells. I assure you that the
merchandise that we sell is exactly what we claim it to be. We
honor our warranties and there are not any registration issues with
our products. The matter described in the February 13th letter has
been turned over to our legal staff. If you would like to reference
this original letter please click on this link

http://www.hooperimports.com/images/...ter_021308.pdf


It has always been our intention to sell quality motorcycles, engines
and parts while providing strong customer service. If you have any
questions or comments, please contact me.


Sincerely,

Larry Hooper

Good for Larry!! Fight the power!!!!

Good! I hope Hooper burns AL a (great, big, huge) new one, they deserve it after the crap they posted.

I figured this issue would some day come to this. Wish good luck to Larry. Surprised it actually took this long.

FWIW, I think this is mainly Lifan's fault. Not Larry at HooperImports.com. If Lifan only wanted American Lifan to sell Lifans here, then they should only import to American Lifan. But obviously they chose to keep selling to Hooper.

He is just wasting his money and time unless it is about the principal or something. He is suing them over trademark violations but Larry is the one doing the violating, or at least he has used the Lifan name which he is not supposed to do, but what do I know, maybe he will win a billion dollar judgment and really show China Lifan how it is.

Anyway, good luck trying to collect on any judgment he may receive from the China Lifan, they are about as big as a small countries government. He better hope they do not counter sue.

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/cou...ase_id-176469/

Doesn't the issue just boil down to selling a motorcycle with a Lifan engine in it and calling the whole assembly a 'Lifan Motorcycle'? It is like selling a Cub Cadet tractor with a honda engine in it as Honda Tractor. I doubt AF would have issue as long as he didn't infringe on their name. W/E lawyer up!!!!!

I would think that they would have their ducks in a rowe befor fileing a Law suite.Pluse I'm sure theres a lot more to the story then what we know setting on the sidlines giving our opinions.

Each importer has their own brand name and when they use the Lifan name they are technically breaking the rules.

I'm not really on either side of the issue, but like I said, it seems a shame to waste money when the laws are stacked against you.

I just found out today my freakin Rabbit Scooters bike (GRX200-III) cannot be titled in my home state, I'm learning more all the time. Anyone need any parts?

I am not going to take sides, but I bet you could part your bike out here pretty quick.

I will take the engine/carb/cdi/coil from you.

Allen

Shoot me a pm with your number and I will reply back or call in the next few days, I am in North Alabama so we are pretty close. You could even come and pick the stuff up.

Thanks,

Almon

PM sent.

Allen

I think the issue is with the American Lifan group and not the parent company Lifan. AL has been trying to smear other companies that claim to sell Lifan's by saying they are not doing so legally, etc....

Larry is just stating that he has been selling Lifan bikes legally in the USA for more then 6 years and I don't think he appreciates AL trying to smear his good name/character by branding him as an illegal importer, or selling grey bikes/products.

I dont understand him filing a lawsuit against AL when he is the one who violated their trademark rights.Guess he is thinking whoever files first will win?For those who have not seen it,check the home page for this site.www.chinariders.net It appears that he is questioning thier trademark

Yep he lost his cases and can no longer sell them I heard.

I could not figure out why he would pay to sue someone when he was doing the stealing?

I don't know, I have always thought of Larry as a good guy so maybe he will find another product line that he can sell.

so american lifan not only screws over bruce from ej cycles, but wants to put hooper out of business too...well, i'll never buy an american lifan now

I really don't think you have your facts straight.

Dont punish China Lifan for some mistakes that AL might have made. I think they got things with Bruce sorted. Lifan builds some decent bikes and despite my statements to the contrary, time has shown me that I'll likely buy from them again when I want another dependable ride. Unless of course, prices continue to go up in which case my ride may be worth more used than it was new in a couple of years. anyway..that is unlikely but just wishful thinking. hehe.

I think mine already is.

BUT I am confused what is happening with the suit? Is the importer/distributer suing Lifan corp. in China? HOW and for what?

I'm old, I'm slow, and in a lot of cases, I'm just plain stupid, but this whole thing has my head spinning.

Let me see if I can sort it out:

1. There is a company in China named Lifan.

2. Lifan exports to anyone with whom they can strike a deal.

3. There is a company in the U.S. named American Lifan, an importer.

4. There are other American companies (Hooper, et al) who also import Lifan.

If the above assumptions are correct, then isn't it a lot like First Baptist Church Of Chicago saying that if you aren't a member of their church, then you can't be a Baptist ?

I'm not trying to troll the thread, the above is a sincere attempt to clarify the situation in order to understand it myself, as I am presently attempting to purchase a Lifan product.

Thats the very same way I see it. The whole thing ended up steering me away from the Lifan and I bought a different.

As a side note I get a kick out of hearing American Lifan claim that they probally built most of the other brands of bikes too, but knowingly put inferior parts on them :lol:

American Lifan is owned (at least in part, from what I understand), by Lifan in China... American Lifan is the only company allowed to use the Lifan trademark in the USA from what I understand. This lawsuit was filed by Hooper, not A.L. from what I understand, so this is not A.L. trying to screw them over, it appears to be the opposite. As far as I understand other importers were also illegally using American Lifan's EPA certificates.

Thats the way it was but now it looks like they woked out a deal where Hooper can sell the Lifan's so long as their branded as "Skygo"

Wow how transparent has this whole thing been?Is there any that thought that Lifan didn't try to milk both sides of the cow?

I believe the issue is, Lifan made a deal with Hooper Imports to sell their bikes many years ago and last year American Lifan was given go from parent company Lifan to be the sole seller of "Lifan" bikes in the USA and told Larry he had to attach Skygo stickers to his Lifan bikes. American Lifan then went on a smear campaign against all other companies that claimed to be selling genuine Lifan bikes, which included Hooper Imports and Larry was not aware of this fact until I emailed him about it. Larry felt he was $crewed by Lifan and I belive brought suit against AL for their smear tactics against his company. (Larry did not tell me any of this, I'm just figuring this to be what is up from what I've read and heard)....

Hope this helps to clear stuff up.

Just to play devil's adovcate and raise my post count.... :D

Is this really something that has to go to court? I mean, okay, I would be some cheezed if someone were talking trash about my product, but it's a sad fact of life.

Isn't this whole case something that could have been handled with a sit down, a couple of packs of John Player's finest, and a bottle of Lemon Hart?

Also, what jurasdiction (sp?) does an American court expect to hold over a Chinese National Company?

Seriously though, I suspect the only people who are going to make any money on this one will be the lawyers. I could have been better handled mano a mano.

--Vince

If I can get the bike I want, I'm just "Jimmy-Crack-Corn" on whatever the he77 anybody wants to call it -- They can call it a Constipated Bull or a Shagnasty Prayer Book, I mean really, who the he77 cares ? ? ?

"Shagnasty Prayer Book?" That's freakin' awesome! Give yourself, 122 points for that one! :lol: :lol:

--Vince

Hooper's suit is against American Lifan, not Lifan in China and American Lifan IS an American company.

actually Hoopers suit included American Lifan Industry Inc, Chongqing Lifan Industry (Group) Co Ltd and Bob Yang.Not sure who Bob Lang is.

Bob Lang is the head man in China.

Almon

The whole thing is a mess if you ask me.

Its as if china lifan was willing to sell to most anybody who could come up with the cash for a container but the american lifan division pushed for exclusive use of the china lifan products here in north America.

Or maybe there was even more to it than that.

I wonder just how in the hell our bikes have a sticker with american lifan on it.Pretty much a big mess to me.

Faulty Premise: It is an Invalid Arguement. I break their rice bowl. :P

And I hear the sound of a rice bowl breaking. I wonder what brand Hooper will sell next year?

tcs

For proof of this, you need go no further than Hooper's web site, which as of this morning still has a picture of the EPA sticker on their bikes that reads "Imported by American Lifan".

tcs

I don't need proof, I'm not a lawyer... I was just stating what I understood, I have not verified any thing I have written and I try to be clear that I am only posting on the subject as far as my understanding of the topic... Ultimately, it makes no difference to me here in Canada.

Hooper Imports is about 30 miles from where I work. I've never met Larry, but have friends who have purchased bikes from him and say he is a very nice guy and honest. Larry was one of the first Chinese motorcycle importers in the USA going back about 7 years and could have been the first, or one of the first to introduce Lifan bikes to the American people.

The Lifan folks made agreements with Larry and w/o notice this past year to 18months have basically smeared his name in order to get market share, then I read others hear repeating what AL has been dishing out on the net about Hooper when it is not true. It think it really stinks and unfortunately AL has the cash to squash Larry in any court case he may face them in.

I hope Larry can get things going again weather with Lifan, or another supplier. Good dealers are hard to come by and I'd rather do business with Hooper Imports then people like Daves Deals on Wheels (local AL dealer about 10 miles from my house).

I wonder whatever became of this? It looks like Larry is still selling the Lifan brand bikes???

Anyone have any more info?

I had emailed Hooper a few months ago on behalf of a few companies that I think he should import and carry, and he wrote that he is not going to do anything until this is settled. He seems fairly sure that he is in the right. If I remember the original, infamous letter on the Lifan of China site, they did not mention Hooper, but I can see how Hooper could be made to feel fairly uncomfortable about being an importer/dealer, and having an insinuation that he is merely a grey-bike dealer.

Hooper vs. American Lifan
 

What's missing in this story is that one of the major players in Lifan china has a relative who is the principal in American Lifan.....soooo, we have an insider family squeeze play going on here trying to usurp all the branding, promotion, and marketing that Larry has done for the name "Lifan" for the past seven years, effectively *stealing* the monetary value of that *good will* and transferring same to this fellow's relative.

Personally, on that set of facts, not to mention the damage that the issue is doing to Lifan in general, I think Larry wins, and Lifan looses in more ways than one. Someone once said that "business is war without guns, and in SOME businesses, WITH guns :)

In general, the chinese seem to have problems with the concepts of trademarks, copyright, and intellectual property :) but this time, they're not in a chinese court, they're in an american court....and as for collecting any damages that might be awarded to Larry, he could have a US Marshall seize the inventory of American Lifan should he win.....

My guess is that this will settle assuming someone on the Lifan side is still mentally sound.

Seer

If Larry purchased his own EPA certs for his bikes then he deserves to sell just as much as anyone else. If he is using the EPA certs another company spent obscene amounts of money to buy then I don't see much difference in him and a grey sellers in that regard.

I just cant see this any other way.