Apparently Washington Redskins owner Dan Synder doesn’t care about public relations or the outlook of his team as he’s fighting to keep the name and doing whatever possible. His latest move is a lawsuit against the five Native Americans who complained about the name to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
A trademark office board decided in June to cancel some of the Redskins’ trademarks, citing federal regulations against protecting words and images that are disparaging or offensive.
The team could have challenged the ruling in appellate court in Washington, but sought help instead in a venue that gives it more options, by going to a trial court to sue the Native Americans who complained in the first place.
The team has used the Redskins name since 1933, and has asked the judge to reverse the trademark board’s removal of protections of six trademarks the team registered between 1967 and 1990. The team argues that the name is not offensive, and that canceling its trademarks would violate its free speech rights and take its property without compensation.
A lawyer for the Native Americans, Jesse Witten, argued that his clients should be left out of the dispute and that the lawsuit against them should be dismissed. But team attorney Robert Raskopf said Amanda Blackhorse and the other defendants belong in court because they’re the ones who filed the petition.
The judge seemed to agree and said he would issue a written ruling at a later date.
