Public Association Trademarks: The Case of the New York Yankees and the Evil Empire

Every once in a while, a court issues a decision reminding us that we may have rights we’ve never known about or sought to assert. This time the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) has given the New York Yankees more than they initially sought to claim for themselves. 

Last month, a panel of TTAB judges held that the New York Yankees could prevent Evil Enterprises, Inc. from using the phrase BASEBALLS EVIL EMPIRE on clothing because the public had, in fact, come to regard the New York Yankees as, the “evil empire” of Major League Baseball.

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Linsanity: From the Basketball Courts to the Trademark Office

“Linsanity” began in February when Knicks benchwarmer Jeremy Lin unexpectedly took the basketball world by storm. Lin had received no athletic scholarship offers out of high school, wasn’t drafted out of college, and was assigned to the Warrior’s D-league three times in his first season with the NBA. 

A soaring basketball career was not generally expected from this 2010 Harvard University graduate, but, after suddenly leading the Knicks to five victories in a row, Lin was promoted to the Knicks’ starting lineup. Lin even impressed veteran Lakers player, Metta World Peace (born Ron Artest), who ran by reporters shouting “Linsanity! Linsanity!” after, with less than a second remaining, Lin scored a game-winning three-pointer against the Toronto Raptors. 

So, on the Monday after the last game of his five-game winning streak, Lin did what any good manager would advise a rising star with a catchy moniker to do: he had his lawyers file a trademark application to register LINSANITY with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Read the rest of what I think about this at my site...