Campbell’s v. Campbell: Trademark Infringement Sends a Political Campaign to Court

Companies Have the Responsibility and Right to Protect Their Brands and Reputation

10/14/25 – – Shelby Campbell, a candidate for Congress from Michigan’s 5^th District, finds herself in some hot soup. She and her campaign are being sued by the Campbell’s Company for trademark infringement.

In its suit filed last week, Campbell’s is claiming that the candidate’s “Soup 4 Change” slogan and unauthorized use of the Campbell’s logo and soup can label design are causing “consumer confusion about potential endorsement.” The plaintiffs point out that after receiving a “cease-and-desist” letter last month, candidate Campbell dismissed the warning and proclaimed that a public battle with the food giant would help her win the election.

Here’s a Detroit News side-by-side comparison of the campaign and corporate designs:

It’s now up to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan to decide if the public could be confused, thinking that the Campbell’s Company is endorsing Shelby Campbell for Congress.

You might think this is an easy call. Companies, understanding the value of their brands and visual identity, have the responsibility and the right to aggressively protect those assets from unauthorized use. But trademark infringement is a murky area of the law, and courts have been inconsistent in their rulings.

Trademark Cases Focus on Confusion and Harm   

Back in the 1980s, I provided PR counsel to a law firm that successfully represented Campbell’s in a case brought against a marketer of novelty store products (classy items like whoopee cushions and plastic vomit). Labels on what appeared to be real cans of Campbell’s soup displayed disgusting flavors and ingredients. The court agreed with Campbell’s that consumers seeing these knockoffs, even if they recognized it as parody, could lose their appetites and be turned off to the brand.

We won. But that was a case of harm due to trademark ridicule. Candidate Campbell may argue that no one will think the soup company is endorsing her, and even if they did, the company would suffer no harm from her clever campaign.

It’s likely the company will assert that in today’s toxic political environment, corporate political endorsements come with significant reputational risk. I agree.

Campbell’s soups and other food products are marketed to people of all political persuasions. No one, no matter how innocent their intention, has the right to threaten that deliberate nonpartisan appeal.

Getting off the Court Docket and Back on the Campaign Trail

What about Shelby Campbell’s hope that her David vs. Goliath clash will propel her to a seat in Congress? There are significant political obstacles for her to overcome in Michigan’s 5^th District, with or without heightened name recognition. She’s a Democrat, and the incumbent Representative Tim Walberg, a Republican serving his ninth term in office, was reelected in 2024 with 65.7 percent of the vote. Trump won the district with 63 percent.

Here’s my unsolicited advice for Ms. Campbell: Now that she’s received all this attention, agree to the company’s cease-and-desist demand, get out of court and focus on the issues most important to Michiganders. I’m confident that strategic pivot would be M’m! M’m! Good!