On July 19, Seattle Post-Intelligencer business columnist Bill Virgin wrote about the Western District lawsuit Cascade Financial brought against Issaquah Community Bank over the defendants’ use of the ISSAQUAH COMMUNITY BANK name and mark. STL discussed the filing here.
He did a nice job framing the dispute: “If you start a bank in Issaquah, can you name it after the town you operate in?
“Issaquah Community Bank, which opened for business this week, thinks it can.
“Cascade Financial Corp., which bought a bank in Issaquah three years ago, says the new bank can’t, because it still holds the name.”
Mr. Virgin quotes Issaquah Community Bank’s president, defendant Robert Ittes, as saying: Cascade’s attempt to hold the name hostage is entirely unwarranted. Whatever rights they may have had were abandoned three years ago. More importantly, our name is a clear and honest reflection of the community we serve. It’s hard to see this as anything other than a frivolous lawsuit designed to suppress local competition.”
He goes on to quote from the complaint Cascade’s countervailing position that while Cascasde “began changing the name on Issaquah Bank’s two branches to Cascade in 2005, it continued to use the Issaquah name ‘in commercial and non-commercial ways, including use of the mark in connection with various financial products and services, and in connection with its sponsorship of community and charitable events.’”
I love it when the mainstream media recognize how interesting trademark disputes can be.