John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe/Getty Images
The battle for the Taco Tuesday brand is coming to an end.
New York CNN –
Taco John’s, the regional chain that trademarks “Taco Tuesday,” announced Tuesday that it is ending its fight to defend the term and will “abandon” it because it is paying legal fees associated with a fight against Taco Bell connected, does not want to pay .
“We’ve always been proud to be the home of Taco Tuesday, but paying millions of dollars to attorneys to defend our brand just doesn’t seem like the right thing to do,” Taco John CEO Jim Creel said in one Explanation
Taco Bell filed a request with the US Patent and Trademark Office in May to cancel the trademark, which has belonged to competitor Taco John’s for 34 years, because Taco Bell claims the commonly used phrase “should be freely available to anyone who buys tacos.” make, sell, eat and party.” .”
As a result of the brand’s abandonment, Creel donated $40,000 ($100 per approximately 400 locations) to Children of Restaurant Employees (CORE).
CORE is a nonprofit organization that “supports restaurant workers with children by providing financial assistance when the employee, spouse or a child is dealing with a life-changing health crisis, injury, death or natural disaster,” Taco John’s said in a statement.
Taco Bell did not immediately respond to a comment.
Taco John’s has owned the brand in every state except New Jersey since 1989. The company has used the phrase for marketing purposes, defended its use of the phrase, and sent cease and desist letters to others who attempted to use it.
But Taco Bell disagreed, saying that “no one should have exclusive rights to a common set” and that every restaurant should be able to use them.
Trademark attorney Josh Gerben told CNN that Taco John’s decision was “not surprising” as “the term has become ubiquitous in the marketplace and any attempt to enforce trademark registration would likely have failed in court.”
“As a result, the trademark registration had little, if any, value at that point,” he said. “If the case had been heard to the end, Taco John’s could have suffered a significant PR loss. By withdrawing from the court battle at this point, since Taco John’s is unlikely to win, Taco John’s can work to control the court’s public opinion on the issue. ”