Washington Redskins Trademark Cancelled Over "Disparaging" Name
The U.S. Patent and Trademark office ruled today to cancel the trademark for the Washington Redskins' name, citing a law that prohibits trademarks that may disparage people or bring them "into contempt or disrepute."
A group of five Native Americans filed a suit against the trademarks after an earlier case was unsuccessful. Read the full decision here.
The Redskins will be allowed to appeal, and even if they lose, they won't be legally obliged to change their name. Losing trademark status, however, means losing federal protection against bootleggers, so anyone will be allowed to sell Redskins merch without any consequence.
