Two New York-based Italian restaurants have failed in their bid to win the trademark rights to the term “Patsy’s.”
According to Courthouse News Service, a three-judge panel in the Manhattan federal appeals court ruled that neither Patsy’s Italian Restaurant nor Patsy’s Pizzeria can lay claim to the mark.
The judges upheld the injunction of U.S. District Judge Ramon Reyes, barring the restaurants from using the “Patsy’s” name alone.
“The considerations pro and con are rehashes of years of arguments that need to come to an end,” commented Judge Ralph Winter. “We are completely confident that a remand would be unilluminating, delay the termination of this litigation needlessly, and merely lead to more fruitless, overlitigated proceedings.”
According to the court, the rival businesses coexisted without litigation until they each started to sell packaged sauce under the Patsy’s name.
This then caused “considerable consumer confusion,” the judges commented.