A judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia entered summary judgment yesterday against Virginia businesswoman Jody Korman, finding that her 2003 "Windshield Doctor" trademark violated Texas-based Synergistic International LLC's "Glass Doctor" trademark. Synergistic, which owns the "Glass Doctor" trademark affixed to over 1100 glass repair and replacement stores in the United States and 24 foreign countries, sued Korman in January for trademark violation. According to one local news source, Synergistic also claimed that Korman was unjustly enriched by "riding the coattails" of the company's success. Finding that there was a likelihood of confusion between "Glass Doctor" and "Windshield Doctor," the court annulled Korman's 2003 trademark and ordered the parties to reach an agreement on payment arrangements for damages.
Posted by franchiselawblog at September 20, 2005 11:01 AM