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| Photo: LionsTap.com |
McDonald's has been sued by a Minnesota burger joint over the use of the phrase "Who's Your Patty?" Lions Tap of Eden Prairie, Minn., has filed a copyright suit in U.S. District Court over the Golden Arches' use of the phrase in conjunction with their Angus Third Pounder burger advertisements, Nation's Restaurant News reports.
Lions Tap, which has been serving up burgers since 1958, registered the phrase with the state of Minnesota four years ago, according to the court documents.
The restaurant is suing the Oak Brook, Ill., chain on charges of trademark infringement, statutory unfair competition, false designation of origin and unjust enrichment, the magazine reported.
"McDonald's acts of infringement have caused Lions Tap damages, and Lions Tap seeks judgment for McDonald's profits made by McDonald's unauthorized and infringing use of Lions Tap's trademarks, for the damages sustained by Lions Tap, and for all costs necessary to remediate the infringing uses and their effects," the complaint says.
McDonald's hasn't commented on the case.
[Via Nation's Restaurant News]
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| It's silly. |
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9-02-2009 @7:48PM bellara said... This pathetic burger joint is obviously not doing well in the first place so am pretty sure suing mickey d will give them the attention and financial boost they seek.who cares anyway its just a stupid phrase so i hope they lose big time
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9-02-2009 @2:48PM PJC said... WTF? If I wanted to see your lame testimonials for suspect products, I would watch infomercials on cable in the middle of the night.... Geeeeez....
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9-02-2009 @2:52PM JLM said... I AGREE WITH PJC!
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9-02-2009 @3:28PM maxij said... If Lions Tap burger registered the phrase "Who's Your Patty?' in Minnesota only and not with the US Department that handles copyright applications there would have been no way that McDonalds would have known that the phrase had been previously copyrighted so the lawsuite for copyright infringement has no merit unless Lions Tap can prove within a reasonable doubt that McDonalds knew that they were in violation of the copyright laws. I don't beleive that Lions Tap can prove it in this case because the pharse was only registered in the State of business, Minnesota. Therefore the burden of proof falls on Lions Tap.
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9-02-2009 @4:56PM robert said... McDonald's isn't in Oak PARK, Il, it's in Oak BROOK, Il. Although Ray Kroc did live in Oak Park, and went to Oak Park - River Forest High School (OPRFHS).
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9-02-2009 @3:46PM johnH said... Lion's Tap filed the phrase as a trademark. And you can sue for trademark infringement within the area that you market your product and use your trademark. So McD can be found guilty of trademark infringement within Minnesota, but probably not in Texas, for example.
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9-02-2009 @4:11PM Richard said... Maxij may be right: trademarks need to be registered with the U.S. Office of Copyrights and Trademarks, which I think is under the Commerce Dept.
But--a note to the author of the posting of an error in fact: McDonald's Corp. is headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois, not Oak Park, Illinois.
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9-02-2009 @4:21PM erin-mn said... I am from Minnesota, and enjoy Lion's Tap burgers, and while it may seem like a silly lawsuit to some, I know I wouldn't want the slogan that I was known for to be used in the same sentence as McDonalds. So, I wish them luck going forward.
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9-02-2009 @4:28PM Shirl said... You have to be kidding me!! This country is so quick to sue someone. That is why prices are up so high to cover the cost of thier attorney's.Loins Tap sales must be down and want McD's to make up for lost sales.If they registered in thier state and not in the whole USA then I think it should only be good in thier state. I Have never heard of them anyway have you???? BUT we all know who McDonald's is.I have tried one of these new burgers and they are so much better tasting then any burger they have. It really has FLAVOR. High in sodium but good.GOOOOOOOOOOO McDonald's !!!
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9-02-2009 @4:45PM Tim said... It seems that you Americans will sue anybody about anything! A hot cup of McDonald's coffee comes to mind - if she didn't think the coffee was hot, why did she buy it in the first place??????
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9-02-2009 @5:54PM UncleBigBad said... how the heck can you "trademark" common words in the English language?
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9-02-2009 @5:00PM timo said... Let's be honest, if the shoe was on the other foot, McDonald's would be screaming bloody murder.
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9-02-2009 @5:06PM Annee said... How can Lion's Tap be harmed when NO ONE has ever even heard of them? LOL $$$$$
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9-02-2009 @5:16PM bob said... it should be , heres your fatty
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9-02-2009 @5:17PM smpettaway said... I mean really, so they didn't know. Just have them stop. Stop waisting time and money. This is why this country is the way it is -- ít's all greed!
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9-02-2009 @5:24PM Jeff said... To all of you that have never heard of Lion's Tap you have obviously never been anywhere even close to Minnesota. Lion's Tap has been around for years, and is rated one of the top places for burgers in Minnesota and the nation for the past many years. Everyone who goes there goes there for a burger because it's the only thing they sell along with french fries. It's what they do and they do it the best. Just search Lion's Tap and you can see that "Who's your Patty" is their slogan, and has been for years. McDonalds is a huge corporation that has thousands of employees, I think they had the resources to do a bit of research before they came out new slogan for their nasty, greasy, digusting burgers. Finally thank you to Timo for saying that if things were switched around McDonalds would be suing for a lot more.
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9-02-2009 @5:28PM lois donaldson said... What the heck is a Lions Tap?
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9-02-2009 @6:54PM mak said... Sure it's a silly suit, but McD will have to pay something for missing their problem in MN. It would have been best for Lion's Tap's lawyer to write to McD's lawyers and start the negotiation, cutting the lawyers' hours that will need to be paid at ridiculous rates (but did any lawyers suggest this?). McD's can just send along somewhere between 10k and 100k, and everybody should be happy. Unless the lions are greedier than that.
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9-02-2009 @5:40PM jim said... I am trying to find where the author said Oak Park, Ill. I read the article 3 times, and see Oak Brook, Ill., which is where McD's Corp. is based.
The reason companies small and large sue each other is because verbal anything does not do any good. There is no honor system between businesses anymore in this country. Lion's tap is only asking for damages this infringement has cost and the cost to recover these damages (lawyers fees.) I believe, with what is in this article, Lion's Tap has full right to persue a lawsuit just like McD's would do against anybody else if the situation was reversed.
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9-02-2009 @5:51PM h said... Face it people - silly or not, there is a trademark under that slogan which means it is property of Lion's Tap. If they want to sue McDonalds..well they have every right to do so. Trademark infringement is trademark infringement no matter if your company is small or big or crappy or good.
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