Re: (erielack) Rights to EL name

["William E. Botkin" <webotkin_@_ecentral.com>]

The reality is that the UP or NS don't have a case claiming that they still 
own the rights to abandoned trademarks such as the Rio Grande or Lackawanna. 
To preserve the rights, the trademarks have to be in active use.  The 
problem is that no one has the financial resources to take them to court and 
challenge the premise.  The trademark laws are quite clear.  Enforcement is 
another issue that is left to the courts.

Bob Hundman, editor/publisher of Mainline Modeler has dealt with issue 
extensively over the past few years.  Again, it will someone with a deep 
pocket or a pro-bono attorney that wants to make a name for him/herself to 
fight this.

Bill Botkin
- ----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Michael Sheehy" <njnyrr_@_optonline.net>
To: <erielack_@_lists.Railfan.net>
Sent: Friday, July 08, 2005 5:22 PM
Subject: RE: (erielack) Rights to EL name


>
> So does Norfolk Southern own the rights to even older Erie-affiliated
> railroads like the New Jersey & New York or the Northern Railroad of NJ? 
> Or
> did these names age off trademark status?  Granted, now most people 
> probably
> don't even know that these mentioned railroads even existed, and the NJ&NY
> mark itself disappeared nearly a century ago, though the name lived on, at
> least informally, for a good 50 years following, same for the Northern.
>
>
>
>
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>
> 


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