Gator, L.L. Bean dispute to be reheard

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday ordered that a suit between software maker Gator.com and cataloger L.L. Bean be reheard in en banc court, a decision that requires greater scrutiny of the case. The lawsuit centers on a dispute that the advertising software of Gator, now known as Claria, infringes the trademarks of L.L. Bean when pop-up ads of the retailer's rivals appear over its Web site. Claria sued L.L. Bean after the retailer sent a cease-and-desist letter asking it to stop delivering ads atop its pages.

The en banc court will issue a decision by the full court of all the appeals judges in jurisdictions where there is more than one three- or four-judge panel, which will give more weight to the matter. The case will be reheard in San Francisco on June 22.