GOP claims trademark infringement
Politico reports: Don’t mess with their elephant.
Or at least, don’t infringe on what the Republican National Committee refers to as the Official Elephant Logo (Federal Trademark Registration 1908397). The phrase appears in a letter demanding that a Web-based t-shirt company “cease and desist” from putting a version of the iconic Republican symbol on shirts and other merchandise.
The demands from the RNC to the California-based CafePress.com put the committee at the intersection of political speech and trademark law, legal experts said. The company is refusing to comply with the letter, despite a second letter from the committee referring to “further action” and possible damages.
“If you want to say ‘GOP’ and design an elephant that’s similar, want to design an elephant that’s not precisely the same as ours, that’s fine,” RNC chief counsel Sean Cairncross told Politico. “Our elephant is specific. It’s stylized, it’s blue and red, it has three stars across its back that are tilted. They’re using that precise elephant.”
The lawyer for CafePress, Paul Alan Levy, called the RNC demand an “abuse of trademark law to suppress discussion of topics of substantial public interest.” -- RNC fights use of elephant logo - Ben Smith - Politico.com