Annotation

132.01 Annotation A trademark is a form of intangible property that cannot exist separate from the good will of the product or service it symbolizes. Good will is a business value that reflects the basic human propensity to continue doing business with a seller who has offered goods and services that the customer likes and has found adequate to fulfill the customer’s needs. It is a well-settled legal principle that trademarks and their associated goodwill pass with the sale of a business. In this case, the sellers’ resort management business built up the goodwill of the resort through its activities, all while using the Bibs Resort marks. Therefore, the purchasers became the exclusive owners of the Bibs Resort marks when they purchased the resort management business from the sellers. Ritter v. Farrow, 2021 WI 14 , 395 Wis. 2d 787 , 955 N.W.2d 122 , 18-1518 .