ANOTHER LAWSUIT INVOLVING THE HOUSEWIVES!
Lady Carbonara Moronzo… OOPS! That’s NOT her!!
This time it’s against da Moronzo BOYZ and Lauritas!
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, names BLK Brands LLC. (“BLK”) and it owners, reality TV stars Chris Manzo, Albie Manzo, and Chris Laurita, as well as Jacqueline and Louise Wilkie, as defendants.
Lady Carbo Moronzo… OOPS! Mistaken Identity… AGAIN!
According to court documents…
“…the Manzo-Laurita family inappropriately used reality TV fame to sell a false story about how the idea for a fulvic- and humic-acid infused health drink originated. Creative Thinkers asserts that the family stole the idea after attending a food industry trade show. At the trade show, the Manzo-Laurita family saw the BLACKWATER(TM) product and conspired with the Wilkies to steal the product, marketing, and distribution plan. They are now marketing the product under the name “BLK Water” and “blk. BLACKWATER” on the Real Housewives television show, online, and in grocery stores nationwide.”
MORE… here.
(Thanks to SH reader “NJ_HDgurl”!!!)
Bravo must be getting sick of providing all their footage for the various lawsuits! The subpoenas must have their own filing cabinet at Bravo HQs!
How incredibly stupid of them.
I”m still confused on what happened. That press release report was very vague about direct tie of Manzo’s and Laurita’s. I can see if they (Blackwater) had been meeting with Wilkie’s and Wilkies went off on their own marketing tangent but how do you take the claim all the way to the distributer? Either way you would think these folks would have lawyers who do the due dilligence necessary to insure all okay and that Bravo would not be party to a fraud without checking it out ahead of time and being very clear about what was happening, since so much of the show is scripted. Either way thanks for the heads up, these housewives just never seem to learn do they?
OPPS
I think Creative Thinkers is saying that Creative Thinkers owned the Blackwater brand and concert of putting fulvic acid in water. Creative Thinkers signed a contract for the Wilkie sisters to bottle, market and distribute it. But the Wilkie’s took it and, as we saw on RHoNJ in that fake “business meeting,” made a deal with the Manzo-Laurita clan to bottle, market and distribute it as blk. So while there may not be a direct tie between Creative Thinkers and the Manzo/Laurita’s, the Manzo/Laurita’s were on notice by that July 2011 cease and desist letter (or as Tamra calls them “cyst and diseased” letter) that the concept was stolen and they still sold it. The Manzo/Laurita’s don’t just distribute, they market and promote it. Or at least I think that’s it.
By the way, I’m surprised the FDA hasn’t had anything to say about all the health claims the Manzo Boyeeeees make about blackwater. Like how it’s a hangover cure.
“The Wilkies assert that they developed the idea for the product after they witnessed the water heal their sick mother. However, in a November 2009 agreement, the defendants received confidential information about the Blackwater specialty product and agreed to keep information about the health water confidential.
“According to court documents, the Manzo-Laurita family inappropriately used reality TV fame to sell a false story about how the idea for a fulvic- and humic-acid infused health drink originated.”
Does this mean BLK water didn’t cure the sick mother??? And here I thought it was going to cure my Lupus…who do I sue??? Bwahaha j/k I would never spend a penny on water that is black. Nevermind believing it would cure anything!
Ooooh. I didn’t catch that part about lying about the origination story. Well, they could be a in little twubble then:-)
I’ve been saying that too. I have clients in the dietary supplement industry and have served in the trade media. You cannot market any dietary supplement/supplement-containing food/beverage with claims that it will “treat, cure or mitigate” anything.
That part about the FDA not stepping in has always been the most baffling part of this for me too. They are making some pretty bold and extraordinary claims about its health benefits. Bold and extraordinary claims should ( and DO, I think ) require bold and extraordinary EVIDENCE. I haven’t paid that close attention to their exact words though. Who knows, maybe they’ve been careful to just offer anecdotes and not make any real claims of scientific proof; or maybe its health benefits ARE well-studied and documented somewhere?
“Creative Thinkers asserts that the family stole the idea after attending a food industry trade show. At the trade show, the Manzo-Laurita family saw the BLACKWATER(TM) product and conspired with the Wilkies to steal the product, marketing, and distribution plan. They are now marketing the product under the name “BLK Water” and “blk. BLACKWATER” on the Real Housewives television show, online, and in grocery stores nationwide.”
They conspired with them to steal it and concocted a fake meeting on tv with a fake backstory to further take credit away from the rightful owners of the trademark.
I thought that the Bozo’s said they saw the BLK water at a trade show and wanted to… market it? How can they steal how the product originated?
Yeah, I thought they were just marketing it for those two ladies they had the meeting with on the show. Is it actually their product?
I did’t think it was their idea. I thought they were marketing and promoting. Maybe they stole the BLK name?
That was all fake. If you read the article, yes it is the Manzo-Laurita product and at the trade show they conspired to steal the trademark from the rightful owners. They said they saw the blk water people at the trade show, this is true. BUT IT WASN’T THE WILKIES. That’s what makes it so stupid. It was the rightful owner of the trademark, blackwater. It was there they conspired to steal it WITH the Wilkies, not when they “discovered” it. So stupid.
But yeah, complicated. Complicated, mostly because of the Manzo-Laurita lies.
Ugh, well, they can just have Caroline yell like at them like the bully that she is and shake her finger in their faces. Waco Jaco and her waco mother can rant about them on twitter. That should do the trick.
its all one big house of cards…..all of em….
I think so too, and I bet the next to fall will be the Gorgas. I’ve never bought their financial situation is as solid as they claim. I mean a FIFTEEN THOUSAND SQUARE FEET house?????? Are any of Donald Trump’s residences even that big?
Maybe the sisters are disappointed in sales?
I’m surprised that the New Jersey Attorney General’s office isn’t checking into the health claims that they are making with Blk. Can they prove their claims? The FTC and Attorney General go after those who make claims like that that aren’t substantiated. Look what happened to some of the claims made by the Diet Pill industry.
That’s a good point.
The FDA is the agency charged with going after those who break the law making false claims.
I don’t think Jac Laurita is named on the suit, it is Jacqueline and louise walkie, that is the way I read it. Wonder what will happen next.
Hoo boy. Given how I feel about the Manzos, what I’m about to do is gonna hurt…
But its seems like they should have a decent defense if they separate what I think are 2 different strains of this argument: 1. Who really thought up, invented and developed the actual product and 2. Who thought up, invented and developed the marketing plan for it. The Manzos only claim to have done the latter, so unless this company can PROVE via dated documents, internal memos or show evidence of a strikingly similar marketing plan for a strikingly similar product that was already out at the time when the Manzo boys BEGAN to brainstorm for this one, I don’t see how they have a case against the Manzos. Then again, I’m not an attorney, so what do I know? But this really seems like typical litigation where everyone who had anything to do with anything with the situation or product gets named in the suit. Ouch. I’m in pain.
Don’t worry. You don’t have to defend them. I think the striking similarities of the products is what is confusing people. The Manzos-Lauritas conspired WITH the Wilkies while attending a trade show after they saw a beverage called “blackwater” to steal the trademark and distribution, etc and renamed it “blk.blackwater”. Duh, genius. There’s proof that they went to the trade show and received confidential info on the product and the company, thus they not only knew of the product they were privy to confidential trade information that they signed they would keep private but instead used it to steal the trademark and business.
Even if the Manzos did not steal the product and the sisters allegedly did then the product is over, and all profits have to be given back right? All that hard work for nothing. Albie must be beside himself now. I bet that event tomorrow night will be cancelled.
Now this is the gift that keeps on giving. This is a serious lawsuit. Who are the Manzo/Laurita clan going to blame this time? They stole the idea and profited from it. This is going to be costly, just the attorney fees to defend themselves will be a fortune, let alone the judgement. Happy Holidays, everyone!
What about ALL that whining about how TERESA was keeping them from opportunities? All the while they were stealing other people’s ideas and intellectual property!
Projection much?!?
I forgot about that!
I’m sure the dastardly, diabolical Tree is behind this somehow!
Even after the Cease and Desist Letter they are continuing to make appearance and market BLK water. They have an event that they are promoting for tommorrow night. The Manzo really believe they are above everything. Arrogant creeps.
These Manzos are going to have to take on another mortgage on that Brownstone to cover all these lawyer fees from all of these lawsuits. Tre must be laughing her ass off. Is it illegal to kept selling and distributing a product if there is a cease and desist letter?
You are so funny Ms. S.H! Love the pictures of Caroline. As to the lawsuit, who knows if it has merit, but it will be fun to watch. I guess they were too stupid to avoid any trademark infringement problems from the beginning. In any case, I believe the interest in BLK water has come and gone, they no longer carry it in any gourmet stores down here. It seems like they may have ordered a case and when it didn’t catch on, they did not reorder. I tasted it and it tastes like tinny water. The whole campaign, despite Caroline doing everything with the black water besides giving herself an enema, has been an epic fail.
I agree. The Manzos are still running around appearing at supermarkets and wine stores to try to sell it. Caroline is going a lot now also. Their company is also backing a wine and a vodka product.
YET. She’s hasn’t given herself an enema on national tv YET. If they get that desperate, my guess is poor Lauren will be the one who has to take one for the team though.
LMAO! You crack me up Guilty!
Stoopid Housewives: How DARE you put that pic of Chunky Don Caro up in the background!!!! She told us many times this past season, she’s very very TINY!!!
LOL
Well I thought Albie said he met the sisters at a trade show, and he liked the product. So I guess he did see the other company there marketing BLACK water. I do not get how the Manzo’s and the sisters got away with this. Are the Manzos the owners? Or do they just get commission for the amount of sales?
Don’t know. They having a promotion tommorrow night in Clifton. Ask them. As I said before, Cease and Desist means nothing to them.
Evidently not if they got the first one in JULY.
I haven’t read the complaint yet, but the article says THEY filed a lawsuit (not sure where)when they got the C&D letter. They likely asked for a stay on the grounds that they say they will prevail on the claims in the letter. Then the “rightful owners” filed this lawsuit.
i am sure they will find a way to blame it on Teresa and Joe……
thats just what i was thinking – caroline will find a way to blame teresa.
Chris Laurita and Albie went to that trade show last Jan. Caroline did not have anything to do with it. She is probably crazy right now. However she would never admit that her perfect brother or son could do anything wrong.
Caroline is busy trying to figure out who to blame. You’re right, it would never be her brother or sons. They better get a good lawyer.
The Manzo’s are still advertising Blk , they don’t seen to be bothered.
the manzos do not pay there vendors either i know people who have been cheated by this scum family
Do tell Basil? We all would like to know about this scum family!
The secret to this whole mess is the comments about them going to the food and beverage show seeing this black water. They where commenting that they met the sisters of this stuff at the trade show and wanted to market it for them. But where the sisters at a both or just walking around. Because if they did see the black water booth then they would have gotten the real owners of the trademark. Also I’ve always wondered why in gods name that Chris Laurita opened up this open ended marketing company. He must have known these women alot longer than just bumping into them. This isn’t going away, and those other drink companies that want to market with them might put it on hold or leave because of the negative publicity and/or the possible criminality of it.
Maybe they can blame the whole mess on Baby JoeGee!
Oh glad you brought that up. I think it was Lauren(or Don) that recently posted a picture of baby JoeGee watching tv all wide eyed. The caption said he was watching the naked ladies of Victoria Secret.
How many times can you refer to a child in a sexualy explicit way before it becomes creepy and inappropriate? You’d think only once but for some people……
A highly respected international law firm is handling the suit by the Creative Thinkers people. Albie, you can’t match them. Infringement and unfair trade have big penalties. Teresa and Joe are saints compared to this clan.
This smells like a Chris Laurita con if I ever heard one and he dragged the Manzo boys in on it. How rich. They think they are above everyone. Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch. That’s the think about KARMA – it comes back and bites you in the a$$ everytime.
I agree. The Manzos and Lauritas are STILL going to their event tonight. I don’t get it.
From NJ.com… But Albie Manzo tells the Star-Ledger that he and his partners filed suit against Creative Thinkers several months ago alleging that the company stole the idea from the Wilkies. “That we used our fame and stuff, it’s just not true,” Manzo says. “We wouldn’t put a false product on the shelves for a reality show.”
Oh Albie,
Dumbest quote EVAR.
Crap! Slipped and hit clicked post comment…
Oh Albie, Albie, Albie… First, what ‘fame and stuff’? Second, I don’t think you understand the suit… They didn’t claim you did it FOR a reality show. They claim you USED the reality show to promote a fradulant story about product of which was someone else ‘s idea.
So, Albie and his family sued FIRST? Was that before or after they received the cease and desist letter? These Manzos are delusional. They really believe all the lies they tell.
I wonder if it all started with a bang-up email like da one Ms Sh got?
That Star Ledger article states that the sisters did not agree with their share of the profits from Creative Thinkers. So before they broke ties with them, they hooked up with the Manzos. So the Manzos stole the sisters away from Creative Thinkers. The sisters signed some confidentiality agreement with Creative Thinkers. I think the sisters are in more trouble than the Manzos. The Manzos probably met the sisters at the show, and Chris Laurita charmed them into leaving the other company. Those sisters looked pretty goofy to me.
Speaking of Baby JoeGee…couldn’t the whole Manzo – Laurita clan get in trouble with the feds for linking that poor baby to pornographic content? That would seem to me to be child porn? I don’t understand why they haven’t been held accountable for that whole fiasco!
yes so gross and classless all of them!
These people should be embarrassed by the way they are depicted on the show, I am sure they did steal the idea, they dont seem that bright!
The Manzos are pictured in Miami at lunch drinking VOSS water. The pic is in Chris Manzo’s twitter pics. If you own a water company, why would u take a pic of yourself drinking another competing product????They really are just not bright. I don’t know what all the suing is about anyway–the water does not seem to be doing well. I live in NJ and I NEVER see anyone drinking it.
I also live in NJ and I will assert I am open to trying it. I am rather a devotee of healthy foods and beverages (Whole Foods supermarket, and other health food stores). I simply need to do my research on the ingredients via Pubmed. BLK is not around here, yet.
It is around here. It is at Kings, Whole Foods, Shop Rite. I tried it, it tastes just lik water. It is expensive. I have not seen one person drinking it anywhere, ever. When I bought it at Kings, three people on line said “How is that water? Do you like it? I would never drink water that is black!” If it is doing so great, why are the Manzos still running around pushing it at supermarkets? I hope the boys do well with it, but it does not look like it is catching on here in NJ.
n: You must be new to SH. Here’s the SH BLK water review:
http://stoopidhousewives.com/2011/08/14/real-housewives-of-new-jersey-albie-manzochristopher-manzochris-laurita-the-blk-water-review/ TFC!! SH
I wouldn’t try anything that looks that repulsing, that comes from organic decomposition, and that hasn’t been log-term tested. I’d be afraid of getting some kind of toxic effect from it.
I’m still sure it’s a heckuva lot healthier than Coca-cola! But then again … who knows.
El Isle bee
What happened to that other lawsuit? The one where the Manzos and Joe Gui beat up some cops? I wonder if there will be a trial. It has been 6 months since it was mentioned in the news. This family is really something. They get sued left and right and do not seem the least bit bothered by it.
The FDA will only step in if they put any health claims on the label of the bottle. You can tout all the health benefits you want, but if you are selling this as bottled water which is regulated under the FDA 21 CFR 165, you can not make make the health claim on the label. **NOTE** Changed user name, as real names are not necessary to add your comment. SH