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Van Leeuwen Ice Cream

Controversies

Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.

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  1. 2026

    Court orders Rebel Creamery to pay $23.785 million to Van Leeuwen in trade dress case

    Ruling

    A U.S. district judge ruled that Rebel Creamery intentionally copied the packaging of New York ice cream company Van Leeuwen and ordered Rebel to pay $23.785 million, stop selling confusingly similar trade dress products, and redesign its packaging. Rebel denies the copying allegations and appealed the ruling on August 12, 2026.

    Company response

    • Denial — Rebel Creamery

      Rebel denied the allegations, claiming they were unaware of Van Leeuwen’s packaging when their company opened in 2017.

    Source excerpt

    • 美国地区法官埃里克‧科米蒂（Eric Komitee）裁定Rebel公司故意抄袭纽约冰淇淋公司Van Leeuwen的包装，并下令Rebel向Van Leeuwen支付2378.5万美元。
    • 法官下令Rebel停止销售商业外观（trade dress）与Van Leeuwen相似、可能导致消费者混淆的产品，并要求该公司重新设计其包装。
    • Rebel否认了抄袭指控，并于8月12日向美国联邦上诉法院提出上诉，挑战科米蒂法官的裁决。
    Source

  2. 2022

    New York City cashless-operation settlement

    Van Leeuwen settled with the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection after operating cashless in violation of a city law requiring retail businesses to accept cash. The company agreed to comply and paid $33,000 in outstanding civil penalties. The cited material states that the noncompliance began after the law took effect in November 2020 and that the company did not appear at related administrative hearings.

    Source