Becker Brewing descendants sue Ogden brewery for using their name and brand

A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft. The great-granddaughter of a historic Ogden brewer is suing for what she says is unauthorized use of her family’s name and trademark. (U.S. District Court)

Estimated read time: 7-8 minutes

OGDEN — Karen Becker Edson was walking into the Ogden River Brewing restaurant a couple of years ago when she noticed a plaque outside the building.

It claimed that the restaurant stood on the exact location that Becker Brewing once stood. As the great-granddaughter of John Becker, one of the original founders of Becker Brewing, Edson said she knew this was incorrect, and she mentioned it to an employee in the bar area.

She also noticed a large photo of her great-uncle, Gustav Becker, sitting with three other Beckers. Edson thought it was odd that Ogden River Brewing had a picture of her family members, “but did not realize there was cause for concern at that time,” she says in a new lawsuit.

It wasn’t until July 2021, when Edson and her family went to the Ogden River Brewing restaurant for dinner that she became concerned. The plaque still hung outside the building, and the photo of her family was still inside. Then Edson spoke with a manager who told her that Ogden River Brewing would soon begin making Becker’s Best beer.

Edson didn’t know how this was possible, since she’d never given anyone permission to use her family’s name or branding. Upon being seated, she noticed that the menu offered “Becker’s Best Fish n’ Chips” in a font similar to what Becker Brewing once used on its beer labels, the lawsuit says.

This experience was the catalyst for Edson and her daughter, Erin Ruzek, to begin investigating domain names, trademark filings and social media pages. Ruzek spoke with the CEO of Lotus Craft, the registered agent for Ogden River Brewing. Edson’s attorneys sent a cease and desist letter, then a second letter when they say the first one went unanswered.

Finally, Edson took her grievances to court.

On Dec 16, Edson filed a lawsuit in US District Court against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft alleging false designation of origin, false endorsement, abusing a personal identity, violation of common law right of publicity and false advertising.

The federal lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, including defendants’ profits, attorney fees, up to three times the amount of the plaintiffs’ damages “and further relief as the court deems just and proper.”

The lawsuit explains how Edson discovered her family’s name and brand are being used, and compares photos of Becker Brewing branding with Ogden River Brewing branding.

Court records show Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft have until Jan. 10, 2023, to respond. District court records do not currently list any attorneys for either company, and neither immediately responded to requests for comment.

The Becker Brewing brand

Much of the suit is dedicated to establishing Becker Brewing’s long history in Utah and its impact on Ogden, in particular. John Becker immigrated to the US from Germany in the late 1850s, it states, and opened a brewery with a partner in Minnesota.

John Becker’s oldest son, Gustav, then traveled to Ogden in 1890 with partner William Schellhas and opened the Schellhas Brewing Company. Two years later, John Becker and his youngest son, Albert, arrived in Ogden and the Beckers took over the entire operation, renaming it Becker Brewing and Malting.

What followed was decades of being “the most successful of all the Ogden breweries, if not all Utah breweries,” the lawsuit says. “Becker Brewing is the only brewery in Utah to have operated before, during and after Prohibition. It was open longer than any other Utah brewery, staying in business for 75 years and continuing to operate in a limited capacity for several years thereafter.”

Becker Brewing closed its doors in 1962 due to competition from large national breweries, the lawsuit states, but the Becker family didn’t sell the buildings until the early 1970s. They were eventually demolished in 1984.

“Nevertheless, the Becker name and the Becker brand continue to live on in the hearts and memories of Utahns,” the lawsuit states. For instance, Utah State University holds an “impressive collection” of Becker photos and memorabilia; collectors still search for Becker-related products on sites like eBay; and skiing sites like Becker Face and Snowbasin’s Becker Lift are nods to the Becker family’s role in promoting the sport.

According to the suit, Lotus Craft “purports” to own the following marks:

  • Becker’s Best
  • Becker’s Premium Lager Company
  • Becker’s Premium Lager Co.
  • Out West It’s Beckers and design
  • Becker’s Mellow

A trademark search on the United States Patent and Trademark Office website shows that Lotus Craft applied for the first three marks (Becker’s Best, Becker’s Premium Lager Company and Becker’s Premium Lager Co.) between November 2019 and September 2020, but each filing was subsequently abandoned between November 2022 and December 2022.

Quoting from the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s rejection of one of Lotus Craft’s attempts to register these marks, the suit states that the company “has co-opted a brand it alleges was abandoned to the public domain and seeks to trade on the remaining, if any, goodwill and nostalgia that was potentially generated by the unrelated third-party owner.”

The other two listed marks (Out West It’s Beckers and design; and Becker’s Mellow) were filed for by Lotus Craft in September 2020, then “published for opposition” between August 2022 and September 2022. Both marks are currently listed as “live.” The suit states that Lotus Craft was allowed to register these marks and that Edson’s attorneys have filed for extensions of time to oppose these applications.

It also alleges that Ogden River Brewing has used at least three of these “misappropriated” marks directly on cans of beer: Becker’s Best, Becker’s Premium Lager Co. and Out West It’s Beckers. These beer cans are advertised on Ogden River Brewing’s social media platforms and sold at brick-and-mortar locations in Utah, the lawsuit states.

A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)

These cans bear a “striking resemblance” to cans of Becker’s Best manufactured by Becker Brewing in the 1940s, the lawsit says, from the fonts to the logo’s shield shape to the use of the “Becker Brewing goose.”

A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)

Ogden River Brewing’s label even states, “Founded in 1892 along the banks of Utah’s Ogden River and stood for 75 years as one of the longest operating breweries in the West. Proudly brought back by our family of brewers.”

A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)

The suit continues that there are no collaborations between the Becker family and Ogden River Brewing or Lotus Craft, and that the Becker family has not been compensated in any way for the use of their name and brand.

“Because of defendants’ unauthorized use of the misappropriated Becker marks, plaintiff no longer has any ability to revive the Becker brand in conjunction with her own use of the brand, legitimate licensing, and/or joint collaboration in return for compensation, something plaintiff has considered doing,” the lawsuit states.

Bringing back Becker?

The suit also emphasizes that Ogden River Brewing head brewmaster Pat Winslow hasn’t been shy about how he’s drawing from Becker Brewing branding. For instance, the suit references a 2017 Facebook post in which Winslow wrote that Ogden River Brewing will “bring back the spirit of Becker Brewing with a commitment to superior and locally sourced ingredients, craftsmanship and community. … I plan to honor the Becker family with beers and hand-crafted drinks named after the founders and represent Becker’s contribution to the craft and community in the taproom’s décor.”

In another example, the suit references November 2017 Instagram posts on the Ogden River Brewing Instagram account which state things like, “We’re bringing local beer back to Ogden!” and “Channeling the spirit of Becker Brewing for this.”

A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)

Additionally, the suit outlines how Edson and Ruzek tried working directly with Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft before going to court. Ruzek spoke with Lotus Craft CEO Brian Wrigley over the phone in July 2021, it states, expressing concern about how her family’s name and brand were being used. Wrigley told Ruzek that they’d attempted to contact her family, but the only attempts Ogden River Brewing ever made to contact the Beckers were via two Facebook posts on the company website, asking anyone who knows the Beckers to please put them in touch with the company, according to the law suit.

A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker.A screenshot from a lawsuit filed against Ogden River Brewing and Lotus Craft by the great-granddaughter of Ogden brewing legend John Becker. (Photo: US District Court)

It continues that Wrigley told Ruzek that his company “made the assumption Becker’s Beer had ‘died off'” and they “wanted to ‘honor it.'” Ruzek asked that Ogden River Brewing stop using the Becker name, but says the defendants did not yes

Edson’s attorneys next sent a cease-and-desist letter to Wrigley in August 2021, the lawsuit continues, which Wrigley did not respond to. A second letter sent in September 2021 was met with “‘three options to cooperate with the Becker’s family representatives,’ none of which consisted of cessation of use of the Becker name,” it states.

“Defendants demonstrably knew they needed permission from a Becker family member to use the misappropriated Becker marks, but when that permission was not obtained, (they) proceeded to use the misappropriated Becker marks anyway,” the lawsuit states.

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