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Red Cross row

Red Cross row


Johnson & Johnson, the US pharmaceutical giant, has filed a lawsuit against the American Red Cross, demanding that the charity stop using the red-cross symbol on products it sells to the public.

Johnson & Johnson also uses a red-cross logo design, which it began using in 1887 and while the American Red Cross was created six years previously, it only received its congressional charter in 1900.

The suit was filed in a District Court in Manhattan this week, following the breakdown of lengthy behind-the-scenes negotiations. The suit contends that the historic charter did not empower the Red Cross to engage in commercial activities competing with a private business.

‘For a multibillion dollar drug company to claim that the Red Cross violated a criminal statute ... simply so that J&J can make more money, is obscene,’ said Mark Everson, president of the Red Cross.

Johnson & Johnson responded by stating: ‘After more than a century of strong cooperation in the use of the Red Cross trademark... we were very disappointed to find that the American Red Cross started a campaign to license the trademark to several businesses for commercial purposes.’

The suit requests that the Red Cross destroy the products in question. In opposition, the Red Cross stated that the products in question were part of health and safety kits and that profits from the sales went to boost Red Cross disaster-response efforts.

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