Fresno business owner files trademark lawsuit
FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — A Fresno business owner filed a trademark lawsuit against a company that she says stole her brand name reputation and goodwill.
Hannah Serimian is the creator of Boxy Girl.
She says she registered and trademarked the name for her line of products in 2015.
But three years later, a company named Jay at Play launched a line of dolls it named Boxy Girls and even named one Hannah.
The lawsuit targets Jay at Play and its corporate officers Joseph A. Sutton and Alan J. Sutton. Jay at Play is a Hong Kong corporation, having a principal place of business in Boca Raton, Florida, and its parent company, Jay Franco & Sons, is based in New York City.
“It’s time for big companies with big legal budgets to stop bullying female entrepreneurs,’’ Serimian said. “We aren’t going to let Jay at Play rob of us our intellectual property, our years of hard work, and our stellar brand reputation.’’
Global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP is representing Boxy Girl and Serimian in the lawsuit.
“As our complaint lays out in detail, Ms. Serimian filed to federally register the Boxy Girl trademarks early and worked tirelessly to build her business,” said Greenberg Traurig Intellectual Property Shareholder Barry Horwitz. “While trademark rights continue to evolve in the age of search engines, social media and e-commerce, the facts here will show that Jay at Play violated the law by taking and exploiting the name and marketing efforts of a female entrepreneur’s promising business. We look forward to presenting our claim for damages in court.”
Jay at Play, the complaint states, currently has an F rating from the Better Business Bureau.
