Facts Flashcards
the district court decided TabaCuba was entitled to a judgment…
as a matter of law
generally, why did the district court decide TabaCuba was entitled to summary judgment?
because there were no disputed issues of material fact in the case
what is special about Contramaestre soil?
- geologists believe it to be of volcanic origin
- very fertile soil where a particular strain of tobacco flourishes
when did Contramaestre brand cigars start being produced?
1938
in 1938, how were Contramaestre cigars distributed?
worldwide
what page in the record states that CONTRAMAESTRE has long since acquired secondary meaning in the United States and other markets?
pg. 3
what year was the Cuban revolution?
1959
what does CTE stand for?
Cuba Tobacco Exporters
before the cuban revolution, who owned the contramaestre valleys?
CTE
what was the make up of CTE?
500 employees, primarily owned by US investors
who produced almost all Contramaestre branded cigars before the Cuban revolution?
CTE
did CTE distribute large quantities of cigars to the US before the Cuban revolution?
yes
Contramaestre cigars were known as what?
the best of the best cigars from Cuba (pg. 4)
did Contramaestre cigars become “the” cigars to smoke?
yes
where id the officers, managers, supervisors, other employees and their families go when they left Cuba at the time of the revolution?
the DR
what did CTE take with them to the DR?
most of the equipment in the factory, remaining supply of Contrameastre tobacco seed, the actual plants.
who order the fields be scorched?
CTE’s owners
who occupied the valleys after CTE left?
sugar cane farmers
how long did sugar cane farmers occupy the valleys before TabaCuba reconstituted Contramaestre’s tobacco business?
a few years
what type of business is TabaCuba?
a for profit business that is part of the new state tobacco monopoly
what year was TabaCuba established?
1959
is TabaCuba the exclusive manufacturer of virtually all cigars made in Cuba after the Cuban revolution?
yes
did Contramaestre cigars taste a bit different when TabaCuba started making them?
Yes, perhaps because of the scorched earth and sugar cane famers
did the reputation of Contramaestre cigars diminish in though the cigars tasted a bit different when TabaCuba started producing them?
no (pg. 5)
which city did CTE first go to after leaving Cuba?
Puerto Plata
under what condition did the DR allow CTE to start producing cigars?
DR took an ownership stake in the company
when did CTE change their name to ETM?
when they moved to the DR at the time of the Cuban revolution?
what happened after ETM’s plants did not do well in puerto plata?
they scouted the Caribbean looking for the soil that was most like Contramaestre’s soil
Where did ETM set up head quarters after their plants did not do well in Puerto Plata?
Plymouth, Montserrat in the British Leeward Islands
did ETM use the original contramaestre seeds when they planted on the leeward islands?
yes
where did ETM grow the tobacco? where did ETM get labor to harvest the tobacco? where did ETM roll the tobacco?
grown in the leeward islands; labor came from Plymouth; rolled in DR (pg. 6)
why did ETM change the name of its Contramaestre cigars to PLYMOUTH and PUERTO PLATA?
b/c the people in the DR, which is where the cigars were rolled, had a disdain for a Cuban name being applied to “local” tobacco
how did ETM market their cigars to the US after settling in the leeward islands?
as Puerto Plata and Plymouth (pg. 6)
when did the US put the embargo in place?
October 1960
when did Fidel Castro ban the sale of Cuban cigars to the US?
some time before the US embargo was put in place in October 1960
did Fidel Castro ban the sale of cuban cigars to the US before TabaCuba began producing the cigars?
yes
has the US market demanded Contramaestre cigars since the embargo?
yes, it has been a persistent demand with lots of press coverage
during the embargo, were TabaCuba’s cigars distributed to everyone but the US?
yes
what did TabaCuba’s cigars not lose during the embargo?
their renown
How did TabaCuba’s cigars come into the US during the embargo?
- travelers who went to countries where the cigars were not banned
- impossible to determine the magnitude of illegal imports
- cigars seized at border checkpoints
- shipped directly to cigar aficionados and cigar store owners
when did ETM finally have success selling their PUERTO PLATA and PLYMOUTH cigars?
in the mid 1970’s
why did ETM’s cigars finally succeed in the mid 1970’s?
the places where the tobacco was being farmed (4 valleys on Montserrat, Nevis, and Redonda) were the same size, shape, geographic orientation
when did ETM change the name of its cigars from PUERTO PLATA and PLYMOUTH to CONTRAMAESTRE COLORADO MADURO?
In 1999
why did ETM change the name of its cigars to CONTRAMAESTREAN COLORADO MADURO?
to capitalize on a US market that had never lost its love for CONTRAMAESTRE cigars
when did ETM incorporate its subsidiary Expatabac?
in 1999
what was ETM’s purpose for incoporating its subsidiary Expatabac?
for the purpose of importing, selling, and offering for sale CONTRAMAESTREAN COLORADO MADURO cigars
What does “Colorado Maduro” mean?
it is a designation of color of the leaf in which the interior, cut, tobacco is wrapped. The original cuban CONTRAMAESTRE cigars had, in fact, been “Colorado Maduro” cigars and they remain as such, but thee is no evidence in the record that they were ever sold or marketed this way.
who funded blindfolded expert taste tests in Canada and Mexico?
ETM
could the experts in the blindfolded taste test distinguish b/t ETM’s and TabaCuba’s cigars?
No but some noted ETM’s cigars were superior to TabaCuba’s
when did ETM begin importing Contramaestre Colorado Maduro cigars into the US?
2000
Who makes up ETM’s market for Contramaestrean Colorado Maduro cigars?
- 67% is caterers of banqets, private clubs, business hotels
- 33% high end tobacconists and mail-order houses
are there other cigars that are more expensive the Contrameastrean Colorado Maduro cigars?
yes, Haitian cigars known as zombies
when did Expatabac file a use based application to register Contramaestrean Colorado Maduro on the principal register for “fine cigars” in US International Class 34?
December 1, 2013
when was US registration issued for Contramaestrean Colorado Maduro?
January 7, 2014
when was the US embargo lifted?
June 1, 2015
did TabaCuba immediately begin importing cigars into the US when the embargo was lifted?
yes
