SLCC Punk: San Diego Tries to Muscle Rights to 'Comic Con'
The Salt Lake Comic Con is experiencing its first year, but the convention already generating some potential legal battles with its larger comic con brethren.
In a letter sent last week, attorneys for the San Diego Comic-Con demanded the convention change its name, or face legal action, reports Salt Lake City's KUTV-TV.
What's behind this comical name battle and what lessons can you learn about choosing a name for your business?
Comic Pros and Comic Cons
In the cease-and-desist letter to the organizers of the Salt Lake Comic Con, the attorneys representing the San Diego Comic-Con note that they have registered trademarks for "Comic-Con," "Comic Con International," and the stylized San Diego Comic-Con logo.
However, as noted in FindLaw's In House blog, San Diego Comic-Con has lost in previous attempts to enforce its hyphenated "Comic-Con" trademark against the multitude of other comic events using the hyphen-free "Comic Con" in their names.
- Need legal advice on how your small business should operate? Consult with an experienced business attorney about your options.
Avoiding Business Name Trademark Disputes
Although SLCC may ultimately prevail in any potential litigation stemming from this name dispute, avoiding trademark disputes in the first place is the best way to save you the time and money required to defend yourself in court.
One way to help avoid potential trademark disputes is to establish your rights to your business' name, logo, and other identifying characteristics by registering them as trademarks.
Although registering a trademark is not required in order to maintain your rights in that trademark, it is required in order to enforce those rights in court. As part of the trademark registration process, you can also search the United States Patent and Trademark Office's Trademark Electronic Search System to make sure that no one else has registered a particular trademark.
If you need help navigating the trademark process, an experienced intellectual property lawyer can help you secure and protect the legal rights to your business' name.
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Related Resources:
- Is My Geek Showing?: Salt Lake Comic Con is ruffling feathers (The Spectrum)
- Trademark or Copyright? You May Need Both (FindLaw's Free Enterprise)
- 'Dumb Starbucks': Smart Parody or Infringement? (FindLaw's Free Enterprise)
- Naming Your Business: 5 Legal Tips (FindLaw's Free Enterprise)