Grumpy Cat Owner Awarded Over $700,000 In Coffee Lawsuit

Tabatha Bundesen, owner of the famed feline known as "Grumpy Cat" and founder of Grumpy Cat Limited, was awarded $710,000 in damages after finally settling an intellectual property dispute between her brand and the Grenade Beverage Company.

Grump Cat Limited, which sells branded clothing, pillows, mugs, pens, bags, and books "written" by the sour-pussed Grumpy Cat (née Tardar Sauce) has seen a ton of success. The Chicago Tribune reports that the company made anywhere from $1 million to $100 million in its first few years.

Grumpy Cat herself has appeared on The Today Show, Good Morning America, and American Idol. She was formerly the face of Nestlé's Friskies and even starred in a commercial for Honey Nut Cheerios.

But in 2013 Grumpy Cat Limited struck a deal with Grenade Beverage Company for a line of iced coffees called "Grumpy Cat Grumppuccino." Two years later, the beverage company began using the peevish pet's likeness to promote a line of roasted coffee beans. Grumpy Cat Limited filed a lawsuit soon after.

The filed legal complaint read, "Ironically, while the world-famous feline Grumpy Cat and her valuable brand are most often invoked in a tongue-and-cheek fashion, Defendants' despicable misconduct here has actually given Grumpy Cat and her owners something to be grumpy about."

Grenade alleged that Grumpy Cat did not promote the iced coffee as promised, even citing that during an appearance on Fox and Friends, the moody mouser was supposed to say, "Watch out, Starbucks. The cat's coming for it," and did not.

The eight-person California jury sided with Bundesen and awarded her over $700,000. That could buy her famous feline a lot of treats for the purrrfect cat-themed party to celebrate.