Appellate Court Ruling Recognizes Power Of School Colors

Appellate Court Upholds Ruling Against Smack Apparel Shirts, Recognizing Power Of School Colors

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has "upheld a trial judge's finding of trademark infringement" against Tampa-based Smack Apparel Co. in a ruling that "recognizes both the power and profit potential of school colors," according to Allen Johnson Jr. of the Baton Rouge ADVOCATE. Smack Owner Wayne Curtiss must pay a federal jury award of $10.5M in damages and $35,686 in "lost profits" to LSU, Oklahoma, Ohio State and USC, as a result of Smack producing "six unauthorized T-shirt designs" around the '04 LSU-Oklahoma Sugar Bowl. The court also ruled that Smack is "banned from 'manufacturing, distributing, selling, or offering for sale' any apparel that infringe on the trademark rights of the four universities." The court said in the ruling, "The colors, content and context of the offending T-shirts are likely to cause confusion as to their source, sponsorship, or affiliation and we affirm (the trial court decision)." Johnson notes the appellate court's ruling against Smack "emphasized that the universities have strong historical and financial ties to their respective school colors." The ruling states, "There is no dispute in this case that for a significant period of time the universities have been using their color schemes along with other indicia to identify and distinguish themselves from others" (Baton Rouge ADVOCATE, 12/3).