because it assumed that this investment was, say, “simply a business decision to capitalize on a market opportunity,” See Gasser, 60 F.3d at 774 (citing Hemstreet, 972 F.2d at 1294), the defendants still find themselves the subject of a lawsuit seeking money damages for their conduct over half a century. However, if the defendants had received notice that they were possibly infringing on another’s right to use the marks in question, then they could have changed their behavior a long time ago and, thus, avoided the incredible damages which have accumulated over time. See Aukerman, 960 F.2d at 1033 (citing Rome Grader & Machinery Corp. v. J.D. Adams Mfg. Co., 135 F.2d 617, 619 (7th Cir.1943)); cf. Haviland & Co. v. Johann Haviland China Corp., 269 F.Supp. 928, 950, 955 (S.D.N.Y.1967) (<HOLDING>). By way of illustration, the plaintiffs
holding that laches is an affirmative defense recognizing laches as an equitable defense to a motion to reopen recognizing a laches defense where a party expanded its sales volume from 15000 to 13 million over a forty year period holding that where defense of laches was not pleaded denial of equitable relief on grounds of laches was error recognizing laches as an affirmative defense