A Palm Springs animal rescue organization finds itself in a “mutty” situation.
The nonprofit rescue, called Mutty Paws Rescue, is dedicated to saving, rehabilitating and providing medical treatment for animals “on death row” in Palm Beach County and beyond, according to its website.
Its Facebook page has 39,669 followers and is filled with photos of dogs rescued from local animal shelters, treated for severe illnesses, and then adopted to their forever homes.
But the rescue’s recent expansion into Gwynette County, Georgia, caught the attention of another Mutty Paws about 40 minutes away in Watkinsville. That Mutty Paws is a for-profit company that provides dog boarding, day care and grooming services.
“We’ve been getting phone calls multiple times a day” from consumers confusing the two organizations, says Jeff Lang, who identified himself on the phone as a co-owner of Mutty Paws Dog Boarding, Day Care & Grooming.
The Georgia company had its attorney send a cease-and-desist letter to the Palm Beach Gardens-based rescue group claiming that it was violating the for-profit company’s trademark, court records show.
That prompted Mutty Paws Rescue to file a trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and a preemptive lawsuit against the Mutty Paws Inc. dog boarding company in U.S. District Court in West Palm Beach.
The lawsuit seeks a declaratory judgment establishing that Mutty Paws Rescue has a right to use the Mutty Paws name because, as a non-profit rescue organization, it provides a different service than the for-profit pet boarding company provides.
A declaratory judgment is warranted because of the “substantial case or controversy between the parties, which is now of sufficient immediacy and reality,” Mutty Paws Rescue said in its claim.
The infringement allegation described in the lawsuit has “prejudiced” the rescue group’s ability to continue to serve its mission, the claim says, “given their fear and apprehension of being sued by the defendant.”
According to the Trademark Office website, trademark infringement is the “unauthorized use of a trademark or service mark on or in connection with goods and/or services in a manner that is likely to cause confusion, deception, or mistake about the source of the goods and/or services.”
If a trademark owner can prove infringement, remedies include orders stopping the defendant from using the trademark, requiring destruction of infringing articles, or requiring the defendant to pay monetary relief and the plaintiff’s attorneys’ fees.
Muddy Paws Rescue’s attorney, Fort Lauderdale-based Matthew Sean Tucker, declined to answer questions about the lawsuit but issued a statement saying, “My clients hope for a swift and amicable resolution to the current legal matter, allowing Mutty Paws Rescue to return its full attention and resources to its vital mission.”
A search of Trademark Office records shows that Mutty Paws Inc., the for-profit boarding and day care service, filed its trademark registration in 2015 and was notified of the mark’s approval on Jan. 26, 2016.
Mutty Paws Rescue Inc. filed its application less than two weeks ago, on Feb. 12, according to the Trademark Office’s site — six days after the organization said the letter from Mutty Paws Inc.’s attorney alleging violation of its trademark was dated.
According to the Florida Division of Corporations, Mutty Paws Rescue was founded in 2019. Ashley N. Miller is listed as president.
The two organizations are not the only ones in the country using the “Mutty Paws” name.
A “Camp Mutty Paws” is located in Plano, Illinois, a “Mutty Paws Retreat” is located in Belleville, New Jersey, and “Mutty Paws Ranch” is in Midland, Texas. All three advertise themselves as boarding services. “Mutty Paws Grooming” is in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, and “Mutty Paws Pet Styling” is in Plainfield, Indiana.
But none of those companies registered their names as trademarks, a search of the Trademark Office website found.
After a brief conversation, Lang, of the dog-boarding “Mutty Paws Inc.,” called back and said he spoke with his partners and they had no statement to release about the lawsuit.
An attorney is not yet listed in the federal court docket as representing Mutty Paws Inc.
Ron Hurtibise covers business and consumer issues for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. He can be reached by phone at 954-356-4071, on Twitter @ronhurtibise or by email at rhurtibise@sunsentinel.com.