Shelby v. Superformance International Inc.

SELYA, Circuit Judge.

The appellants, Carroll Shelby, Shelby American, Inc., and Carroll Shelby Licensing, Inc. (collectively, Shelby), cloak this appeal in the raiment of trade-dress law. That masquerade ignores the central question of mootness (an issue that Shelby attempted to obscure in its appellate filings). For the reasons that follow, we conclude that Shelby’s appeal must be dismissed and that vacation of the decision below is unwarranted.

The predicate facts are straightforward. In the 1960s, Shelby manufactured and sold the Shelby Cobra 427 S/C. After the initial commercial production…