Rebel Creamery, an ice cream manufacturer based in Utah, has declared bankruptcy following a legal defeat against competitor Van Leeuwen. The court ordered Rebel to pay $23.8 million after determining that Rebel had deliberately copied Van Leeuwen’s packaging.
The company sought Chapter 11 protection in a Utah U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Friday. Reports indicate that Rebel Inc., which markets its low-carb ice cream in well-known retailers like Walmart, Target, and Kroger, has assets and debts both ranging between $10 million and $50 million.
This situation arises just a month after Rebel was instructed to pay nearly $23.8 million in profits to Van Leeuwen as U.S. District Judge Eric Committee ruled that Rebel’s actions were intentionally deceptive, replicating the unique packaging of the New York-based ice cream brand.
Van Leeuwen initiated a lawsuit in 2021, claiming that Rebel had copied its distinct packaging style, characterized by a soft-colored pint with a coordinated lid, styled lettering, and a minimalist approach.
The committee mandated Rebel to cease the sale of the infringing packaging and to rework its pint design.
“The trial evidence supports that Rebel’s actions intentionally violated and diluted Van Leeuwen’s trade dress,” the court noted, according to reports.
Rebel is now barred from selling items with the contested design and must create a new packaging design to prevent further infringement.
Additionally, the ruling stated that Rebel’s product designs were confusingly similar to those of Van Leeuwen, which misled consumers.
The judge articulated that Rebel would have to forfeit any profits accrued through the sale of the offending pints.
Before filing for bankruptcy, Rebel appealed the ruling, maintaining that its founders had not been aware of Van Leeuwen’s packaging when creating their own.
The judge reiterated that Van Leeuwen is entitled to $23,785,000 from Rebel’s profits linked to the infringing pints.
Rebel contested the claims, asserting that their design process did not involve viewing Van Leeuwen’s work. Rebel Creamery was established in 2017, while Van Leeuwen was founded in 2008 and unveiled its current packaging in 2016.
Documents from the court revealed that Rebel’s pints appeared in grocery stores in 2018 and the resemblance caught the attention of Van Leeuwen’s staff by late 2018 or early 2019.
Throughout the lawsuit, the court rejected Rebel’s narrative regarding their design process.
The judge expressed that he deemed Rebel’s testimony about their design process as fabricated, suggesting that the resemblances between the brands were improbable to have occurred purely by coincidence.
Rebel appealed the considerable $23.8 million judgment on August 12, two days prior to its bankruptcy filing.
Van Leeuwen, established in New York City in 2008 by siblings Ben and Pete Van Leeuwen along with Laura O’Neill, started in a yellow ice cream truck, opening their first shop in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, in 2010.
From its New York roots, the company has expanded into a national chain, boasting around 100 scoop shops across the United States as of 2026.
Interestingly, both Rebel and Van Leeuwen were noted to be among the ice cream brands that experienced substantial growth year-over-year in 2025, according to data shared by Instacart last month.
