UT sues over sawed-off horns
Vendor claims logo parody protected under First Amendment
By: Rick Rojas
Issue date: 1/22/07 Section: News
 Brad Honer - THE BATTALION The University of Texas is suing Aggieland Outfitters to cease and desist its production and use of the saw 'em off logo. |
"Saw 'em off," a logo often seen printed on T-shirts and other apparel, is at the center of a legal dispute between the University of Texas and a College Station merchant.
The UT Board of Regents filed a formal legal complaint against College Station-based Aggieland Outfitters and its parent company, Kalcorp Enterprises, for manipulating the UT longhorn silhouette on the products.
"Defendants' unauthorized use of UT Marks complained herein is likely to cause confusion, to cause mistake, or to deceive customers," wrote Louis T. Pirkey, an attorney representing the Board of Regents, in the complaint.
Merchandise with the logo has been sold since 1997, and there have not been any complaints, until now, said Fadi Kalaouze, owner of Aggieland Outfitters and Kalcorp.
Kalaouze attempted to trademark the logo, but was denied by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
"The similarities among the marks and the goods are so great to create a likelihood of confusion," according to the final action of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Kalaouze said he holds "seven copyrights with the longhorn at different angles."
The suit was filed Dec. 4, just days after Texas A&M had beaten UT in football on Nov. 24.
". . . UT's complaint is a legally baseless display of poor sportsmanship," according to Kalcorp's motion to dismiss.
Both the office of the Board of Regents and the public affairs office at UT were contacted, but neither was available for comment.
Kalaouze, Class of 1991, is an immigrant from Lebanon who paid his way through A&M by selling T-shirts in the main hallway of the MSC. Since then, his business has grown into Aggieland Outfitters, which he started in 2000 with his wife Hege, Class of 1990.
The saw 'em off products make up the majority of his sales, and this business is his family's source of income. If Aggieland Outfitters were forced to halt the sale of these products, it may push them out of business, he said.
"This is a big chunk of what we do; this is our identity," Kalaouze said.
"All we have worked for in the past 15 years would go down the drain."
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