Palatine, Ill.-based Square D recently uncovered tens of thousands of counterfeit Square D circuit breakers in the inventory of Breakers Unlimited, Noblesville, Ind. The counterfeit circuit breakers, all bearing trademarks registered to Square D, were discovered by Square D during the prosecution of its lawsuit against Breakers Unlimited in the U.S. District Court in Indianapolis. The lawsuit asserts that Breakers Unlimited, a nationwide wholesale distributor of electrical equipment, has knowingly sold counterfeit Square D circuit breakers and has infringed Square D’s trademarks in violation of federal law.
Sources independent of Breakers Unlimited have confirmed the majority of the counterfeit circuit breakers discovered in Breakers Unlimited’s Noblesville warehouse were sold to Breakers Unlimited by Pioneer Breaker & Control Supply, Austin, Texas. Of the more than 50,000 products acquired by Breakers Unlimited from Pioneer Breaker & Control since May 2005, more than 20,000 have been sold in the field by Breakers Unlimited, who has told Square D it has no way to determine from its records to whom it sold the products.