Redskins Will Get Their Day In The 'Rocket Docket' Court

The federal district court in Alexandria, Virginia denied a motion to dismiss the Redskins trademark case, making it clear that the "Rocket Docket" is open for business and ready to hear cases brought by parties who are dissatisfied with decisions made by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB). Pro-Football Inc. v. Blackhorse, 14-cv-01043, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia (Alexandria).

Parties who are dissatisfied with TTAB decisions can initiate "de novo" proceedings in a unique federal court — the district court in Alexandria known as the Rocket Docket. That court, which is across the street from the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), is called the "Rocket Docket" because cases there proceed from filing to trial in less than one year under accelerated procedures - that's more than twice as fast as other federal courts around the country.

The background of this dispute is well known: The Redskin's federal trademark protection provides the Redskins with lucrative rights in the famous name, and the power to exclude others from using the same name in the marketplace. Earlier this year, the TTAB cancelled the Redskins' federal trademark registrations on the basis that it disparages Native Americans in violation of the Lanham Act.

The Redskins thereafter filed a complaint in the Rocket Docket seeking a fresh look at the TTAB's decision. In their motion to dismiss that Complaint, the defendants, a group of Native Americans who were the challengers at PTO, argued that the court lacked a judicially-cognizable dispute between them and the Redskins. The motion to dismiss essentially argued that the Redskins sued in the wrong court and should be limited to an "appeal" of the TTAB decision in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Judge Gerald Bruce Lee's opinion rejected the defendants' argument, saying that if it was okay for the Native Americans to ask the PTO to cancel the Redskins' trademark, then it was okay for them to serve as defendants in the follow on lawsuit. Judge Lee stated that the defendants can "show no reason why their interest would cease to exist" especially considering the fact that if the Redskins win in court, and TTAB's cancellation of the Redskins mark is reversed, the Native Americans would be subject to the very harm they sought to eliminate by filing the challenge at the PTO in the first place. The Native Americans argued that they were not the real party in interest because they were not...