The NFL has certainly earned a reputation for fiercely defending its trademarks, logos, and intellectual property, but it appears in one case, they may have defended their trademarks a little too fiercely.
Last month, the league filed a cease and desist order against The Dimopoulos Law Firm out of Las Vegas as a result of a commercial from the group that featured Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby wearing a silver and black jersey similar to the one he wears for the Raiders. The league contended that the law firm was “engaging in the unauthorized use of” a Raiders trademark.
The problem for the NFL is that the uniform that Crosby wears in the commercial does not include any logos or trademarks that are owned by either the NFL or the Raiders. So, the law firm is suing the league in response.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5DUfcWcyss
“No reasonable consumer could watch the Advertisement and conclude that Dimopoulos was affiliated with the NFL. The Advertisement did not feature any NFL logos or names,” The Dimopoulos Law Firm said in the lawsuit. “By threatening Dimopoulos with ‘heightened legal penalties’ if it does not cease and desist its lawful, non-infringing activities, Defendants have created a case and controversy and threatened legal action against Dimopoulos, entitling Dimopoulos to request a declaratory judgment from this Court.”
Basically, the NFL threatened the law firm with a legal battle, and now the law firm is fighting right back.
