CLEVELAND — A Cleveland roller derby team known as the Guardians filed a federal lawsuit on Wednesday in an effort to keep the Cleveland Guardians baseball team from using the same name.
Known as the Indians since 1915, the Major League Baseball franchise announced in July its plans to rebrand as the Guardians for the 2022 season.
Team leadership announced at the time they were aware of the Guardians roller derby team -- which has not had a season since 2018 -- but had taken the proper legal steps to appropriate the name, WKYC reports.
The derby team's lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court of Northern Ohio, alleges the baseball team disregarded the rights "of the original owner."
“Major League Baseball would never let someone name their lacrosse team the ‘Chicago Cubs’ if the team was in Chicago, or their soccer team the ‘New York Yankees’ if that team was in New York – nor should they,” Christopher Pardo, the derby team’s lead attorney, said in a statement. “The same laws that protect Major League Baseball from the brand confusion that would occur in those examples also operate in reverse to prevent what the Indians are trying to do here. By taking the name ‘Cleveland Guardians’ overnight, the Indians knowingly and willfully eviscerated the rights of the original owner of that name – the real Cleveland Guardians.”
The baseball team filed its first trademark application in April from the African island nation of Mauritius in what it said was an effort to keep its plans a secret and allow the Cleveland Indians to build a rebranding plan and finish the season.
WKYC reports the derby team's lawsuit claims that decision was actually made in an effort to catch them off guard.
According to Pardo, the roller derby team complained to the Indians. In response, the MLB franchise offered what Pardo said was a "truly nominal" amount to purchase the team's property rights, social media accounts and domain name.
The owner of the roller derby team, Gary Sweatt, said the team "forced us into having to protect the name we have used for years," adding, “We know we are in the right, however, and just like our athletes do on the track, we will put everything into this effort at the courthouse."
The baseball team reportedly filed for a name protection with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on July 23. The derby team filed its own trademark four days later and has said it has plans for a 2022 season, the lawsuit reads.
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