I do not practice trademark law. I’m a certified ABA paralegal, and matters of the law interest me, so I research interesting topics.
There are several factors in this case that distinguish it from a commercial retailer using trademarks without permission.
First, rjdev isn’t a commercial retailer. His SPW chips weren’t for sale at bulk in a traditionally commercial space (retail store,
Amazon,
eBay, his own commercial website, etc.).
Second, I believe (and it wouldn’t be too difficult to argue in court) that his designs varied enough from Nintendo’s IP that no reasonable person would confuse them for licensed Nintendo products.
Third, the issue of damages. There is no proof that rjdev, through his designs, impacted or could impact the sale of any established Nintendo trademark.
I think what JLA did was a dick move, and much more black and white “wrong” than rjdev using Nintendo IP’s in the first place. JLA’s analogy of “robbing a thief” doesn’t hold water because rjdev never stole anything to begin with.