ESTTA1118699 03/06/2021 in the UNITED STATES PATENT and TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE the TRADEMARK TRIAL and APPEAL BOARD Proceeding
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Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Electronic Filing System. http://estta.uspto.gov ESTTA Tracking number: ESTTA1118699 Filing date: 03/06/2021 IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD Proceeding 91243580 Party Plaintiff 503 Sports LLC Correspondence DUSTIN ALAMEDA Address 503 SPORTS 15411 PARTRIDGE DR LAKE OSWEGO, OR 97035 UNITED STATES Primary Email: [email protected] 650-515-6130 Submission Other Motions/Submissions Filer's Name Dustin Alameda Filer's email [email protected] Signature /Dustin Alameda/ Date 03/06/2021 Attachments Plaintiffs Reply Brief Mavericks reduced.pdf(2488348 bytes ) Opposition No. 91243580 Plaintiff’s Reply Brief IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD 503 SPORTS LLC, Opposer, v. THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL LEAGUES, INC. Applicant. Opposition No. 91243580 Appl. No. 87/407,131 Mark: PORTLAND MAVERICKS & Design Plaintiff’s Reply Brief To the Board: I am concerned that the previous document was submitted by H. David Starr. To the best of my knowledge, Mr. Starr has not been introduced into these proceedings and has no authority to submit documents. It also appears Mr. Starr has forged Mary Frances Love’s signature at the bottom of the document. Ms. Love has signed all previous documents as “Mary F Love” and this signature is completely different than previous documents and does not include the middle initial. In response to the Defendant’s Brief: 503 Sports has used the PORTLAND MAVERICKS mark in commerce continuously since 2016. The applicant has shown absolutely no valid use of the mark at any point. Although this mark is pending for intent to use, the applicant has shown no bonafide intent to use the mark and does not even attempt to argue intent to use, knowing 503 Sports LLC is already using the mark. Instead, the applicant’s main arguments claim that: 1. 503 Sports has not provided any evidence. This is false and evidence previously submitted includes events, clothing, hang tags and sewn in tags. 2. It is too late to introduce evidence. This claim is again false and is a blatant attempt to prevent 503 Sports LLC from providing evidence that would clearly show rights to the mark. Opposition No. 91243580 Plaintiff’s Reply Brief Additional arguments have included: citing random and irrelevant cases, arguing against pro se representation, challenging the board’s decisions and repeatedly asking to void filings or have the case dismissed. This is a simple hearing about who has the rights to the mark, yet the applicant refuses to address this because the NAPBL has no rights to the mark. This would be a slam dunk for any attorney if there was a case to be made, however NAPBL continues to argue against pro se representation because the entire strategy was to drag out proceedings until 503 Sports ran out of money. An entire team of lawyers (at least 4 that I am aware of) have been hired to go against one small business owner in a search for any technicality that would decide in the applicant’s favor. From threats, to changing contracts, to Ms. Love emailing false information about the proceedings, it is shameful that this unethical quest for greed has continued for 4 years. None of these tactics would be necessary if there was a legitimate argument to be made for the NAPBL having rights to the mark. The applicant has made it a regular business practice to register marks that may be of interest to competitors in order to prevent competition in the industry. The NAPBL attempts to intimidate and threaten small businesses that compete, while forcing larger companies into licensing agreements in order to collect royalties. The NAPBL has no legal rights to the Portland Mavericks mark (or any others in Exhibit E) and no intent to use the mark to identify the source of goods. They simply have the resources to register hundreds of marks and lack the moral compass to be deterred by the fact that this is illegal and unethical. This blatant abuse of the USPTO has continued for more than 10 years. I urge the board to review the evidence in regard to the Portland Mavericks mark as well as the more than 100 marks the NAPBL has been able to register. Respectfully Submitted, 503 Sports LLC ______________________ Dustin Alameda President 503 Sports LLC Opposition No. 91243580 Plaintiff’s Reply Brief Certificate of Service I hereby certify that a true and complete copy of the foregoing Response to the Motion to Dismiss has been served on Mary Frances Love by forwarding said copy on March 6, 2021 via email to: MARY FRANCES LOVE MUNCY GEISSLER OLDS & LOWE PC 4000 LEGATO ROAD, SUITE 310 FAIRFAX, VA 22033 UNITED STATES [email protected] Phone: 202-247-7929 ________________________________ Dustin Alameda President 503 Sports LLC 15411 Partridge Dr Lake Oswego, OR 97035 [email protected] Certificate of Transmission I hereby certify that a copy of the forgoing Response to the Motion to Dismiss is being electronically transmitted to the United State Patent and Trademark Office on March 6, 2021. __________________________________ Dustin Alameda President 503 Sports LLC 15411 Partridge Dr Lake Oswego, OR 97035 [email protected] Opposition No. 91243580 Plaintiff’s Reply Brief Evidence The following evidence shows prior use on the part of 503 Sports dating back to 2016. Additionally, the evidence shows that the applicant was well aware of 503 Sports LLC’s use of the mark prior to registration and used unethical tactics in bad faith in order to attempt to gain control of the mark. Exhibit A 1. A Facebook post dating Portland Mavericks merchandise sold by 503 Sports to 2016. 2. Hang tags, tags sewn onto a jersey and inside a hat bearing the Portland Mavericks name indicating the source of goods. A consumer would undoubtedly be confused if the applicant used the applied for mark compared to the marks used by 503 Sports LLC. Exhibit B 1. Email correspondence and licensing agreement provided to Bill Stewart, president of the Portland Pickles. This proves NAPBL was without a doubt aware of 503 Sports LLC’s use of the mark no later than June 2017. In January 2017, the Portland Pickles and 503 Sports LLC agreed to partner on a Portland Mavericks promotion to be held June 24th, 2017. Shortly after announcing the event, the applicant’s attorney, Robert Fountain, called the Portland Pickles falsely claiming ownership of the mark. 2. Proof of the event held in 2017 and again in 2018 by the Portland Pickles in partnership with 503 Sports LLC. Exhibit C 1. Email correspondence with members of the Hillsboro Hops, an independently owned baseball team. 503 Sports LLC reached out to this organization to help facilitate a good faith discussion/negotiation concerning the Portland Mavericks mark following a threatening phone call from Robert Fountain. Please note Mr. Wombacher believes he had been assigned a license from MiLB for the Portland Mavericks mark. 2. Email correspondence with Robert Fountain. Please note Mr. Fountain and the NAPBL never had any additional contact with 503 Sports LLC and instead filed for the mark based on intent to use. Additionally, this email was forwarded to Mary Frances Love to try to continue a discussion which was declined. Exhibit D 1. Email correspondence between 503 Sports LLC and Renita Hutchinson-Gamble of MiLB. Please note the following. A. Dates are after applicant was denied mark based on prior use and before applying for future use. Opposition No. 91243580 Plaintiff’s Reply Brief B. Applicant attempts to limit 503 Sports LLC’s selection of merchandise, prevents 503 Sports from working with other teams and attempts to stop the use of the “Bellingham Mariners” mark which is unrelated and not owned by the applicant. 2. Licensing agreement issued in bad faith, different than what had been discussed with extremely unfavorable terms. Please note, contract was sent May 17, 2018 and includes royalties dating back to January 1, 2018. Exhibit E 1. Excerpt from a document submitted by Robert Fountain in response to the “Salem Avalanche” mark (serial 86644428) being denied. Mr. Fountain admits to a “historical marks program” in which NAPBL collects marks of former teams that played minor league baseball in order to license them. 2. A list of trademarks NAPBL has acquired through the USPTO using these tactics. Please note these are all names and logos of defunct baseball teams that no longer exist and were never owned by NAPBL. Additionally, specimens only show ornamental use and were not even made by NAPBL. In many cases specimens are taken from eBay listings and merchandise sold by the team itself when it was active. Exhibit B From: Robert Fountain Thursday, June 08, 2017 3:23 PM Sent: To: 'zephyJbay,ports@aolcom' <zephyJbaywos@m> Letter - Portland Mavericks Name and Logo Subject: Bill, As a follow-up to our previous discussion, please find the attached Agreement. Feel free to give me a call at (727) 456-1730 if you would like to discuss it. Warm regards, ROBERT FOUNTAIN DEPUY GENERAL COUNSEL Minor League Baseball 9550 161h St. N., St Petersburg, FL 33716 ph 727.456.1730 I x 727.821.5819 [email protected] <image001 ]g:: 2 Attachments l � Letter - Portland M... Robert Fountain Deputy General Counsel Member Florida Bar VI A EMAI L June 8, 2017 Bill Stewart Portland Pickles [email protected] Subject: Portland Mavericks’ Name and Logos Dear Bill: We understand you are interested in using certain trademarks, specifically those of the historic Portland Mavericks club, belonging to The National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, Inc.