Manufacturer sues Martha Stewart company for using its patent on bedbug mattress protectors

Martha Stewart Living sued over bedbug pad patent

CHICAGO — A manufacturer from Illinois has sued Martha Stewart’s company, alleging it is infringing on a patent for a bedbug mattress protector.

JAB Distributors LLC filed suit Thursday against Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. in U.S. District Court in Chicago.

The Northbrook, Ill., company seeks unspecified damages.

The lawsuit comes as bedbug infestations rise to levels not seen in decades around the country, with people reporting more bedbugs in their mattresses, furniture and clothing.

JAB Distributors — maker of “Protect-A-Bed” mattress protectors — said in court filings that Martha Stewart Living’s Martha Stewart Collection Allergy Wise Mattress Protector infringes on its patent.

Messages left at Martha Stewart headquarters in New York were not immediately returned Friday.

According to court filings, JAB Distributors received the patent last year.

JAB has asked for a jury trial. The next hearing in the case is set for Oct. 27.