Plaintiff, Hawaii Foodservice Alliance alleged that Defendant Meadow Gold Dairies Hawaii, LLC (“MGDH”) used phrasing and imagery suggesting that the Meadow Gold brand products are sourced in Hawai`i, and these activities are misleading and deceptive because the Meadow Gold products contain milk and other products that are imported from the continental United States. Defendants Hollandia Dairy, Inc. (“Hollandia”), Heritage Distributing Company dba Ninth Avenue Foods (“Heritage”), and Saputo Cheese USA Inc. fka Saputo Dairy Foods USA, LLC (“Saputo”) (collectively “Supplier Defendants”) supply products to MGDH.
Plaintiff’s designated expert, Thomas J. Maronick submitted surveys which focused on products and intellectual properties (the “Hawai‘i-Themed Images and Phrases”) for which this Court has already ruled in Defendants’ favor. Defendants filed a motion seeking to exclude Maronick’s conclusions
regarding consumer perceptions of those products and Hawai‘i-Themed IP.
Marketing Expert Witness
Thomas Joseph Maronick holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law, with an emphasis on corporate, business and consumer law. He is a member of the Maryland Bar. He also earned a Doctor of Business Administration degree from the University of Kentucky, as well as a Master of Science in Business Administration from the University of Denver, having majored in marketing.
Maronick is an Emeritus Professor of Marketing at Towson University College of Business and Economics, where he taught marketing, strategy, and research courses from 1987 to 2017. He previously held faculty positions teaching marketing at the University of Baltimore School of Business and Virginia Commonwealth University. Additionally, Maronick worked as the Director of the Office of Impact Evaluation at the Federal Trade Commission from 1980 to 1997. Since 1997, Maronick has worked as a marketing consultant and expert witness. He has provided expert services in over 150 cases involving consumer litigation, advertising, trademarks, and survey research.
Discussion by the Court
Maronick concluded “the main message communicated to a significant percentage of consumers . . . is that the milk and dairy products . . . come from Hawaii.”
Defendants sought to exclude Maronick’s testimony because it was irrelevant since his surveys focused on Plaintiff’s claims for which summary judgment had been granted in their favor. Plaintiff contended that the surveys did not heavily focus on the Hawai`i-Themed Images and Phrases, which were no longer part of Plaintiff’s claims.
Maronick’s survey required that the respondents review an image of the story of the Dairymen’s Association that appeared on a side panel and asking them if they noticed the at-issue phrase “Hawaii’s Dairy.” The Court did not find Maronick’s testimony relevant to the remaining claims to the extent that the surveys involved the groups reviewing products containing the Hawai`i-Themed Images and Phrases.
To the extent that Defendants contended that Maronick failed to apply generally-accepted principles and methodologies, the Court held that cross-examination can address these concerns.
Held
The Court granted in part and denied in part the Defendants’ motion to exclude the expert reports and testimony of Thomas J. Maronick.
Key Takeaway:
Federal Rule of Evidence 702 controls the admissibility of Maronick’s opinions. The rule requires that the evidence must assist the fact finder to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue; and the witness must be sufficiently qualified to give the opinion.
Case Details:
| Case Caption: | Hawaii Foodservice Alliance, Llc V. Meadow Gold Dairies Hawaii, Llc Et Al |
| Docket Number: | 1:21cv460 |
| Court: | United States District Court, Hawaii |
| Order Date: | July 29, 2024 |
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