F
ferg
Guest
What is the name of your state? MA
Hi,
I operate a company in Toronto which I incorporated in 1998. There were no existing trademarks relating to the name of the company at that time in either Canada or the US.
In Dec. 2001 a pretty big NY-based corp. registered my Canadian corporate name as a trademark in the US.
I became aware of their intentions to launch a line of products under that name and began marketing myself in the US under a different name in Jan. 2002.
They threatened to sue me about 6 weeks ago, and indicated their willingness to settle under 3 conditions: I sign over my domain name to them; no products I sell should bear the name in question anywhere on their packaging; we must change the corporate name of our company.
The first condition is no problem, as it is not important to my business. The second condition was met as soon as we heard about their intentions to launch a line with the name. The third condition is simply too much hassle and I don't want to go along with it.
They have chosen to proceed with litigation in Massachusetts, where I have no assets and no registered business (I have no registered business in the US at all).
Could someone tell me just what power of enforcement they would have in collecting alleged (and fictional) damages?
Many thanks
Hi,
I operate a company in Toronto which I incorporated in 1998. There were no existing trademarks relating to the name of the company at that time in either Canada or the US.
In Dec. 2001 a pretty big NY-based corp. registered my Canadian corporate name as a trademark in the US.
I became aware of their intentions to launch a line of products under that name and began marketing myself in the US under a different name in Jan. 2002.
They threatened to sue me about 6 weeks ago, and indicated their willingness to settle under 3 conditions: I sign over my domain name to them; no products I sell should bear the name in question anywhere on their packaging; we must change the corporate name of our company.
The first condition is no problem, as it is not important to my business. The second condition was met as soon as we heard about their intentions to launch a line with the name. The third condition is simply too much hassle and I don't want to go along with it.
They have chosen to proceed with litigation in Massachusetts, where I have no assets and no registered business (I have no registered business in the US at all).
Could someone tell me just what power of enforcement they would have in collecting alleged (and fictional) damages?
Many thanks