Trademarked Developments
Seattle, WA
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Posted 17 days ago in Trademark Infringement
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I am somewhat confused in regards to a previous question asked (see Trump Tower) I own a second home in the Palm Springs area at a country club whose name is trademarked...Let's use The Vintage Club as an example. I want to try and sell my home on the internet before I hire a real estate agent. Can I not use VintageClubhomeforsale.com to sell it? I own a portion of that development. I am not trying to confuse people as to where they are going...I just want them to buy my home! When they sold me the property and made their profits, it also made me an owner in part to that name( the property within the development)
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Answers (3)Pamela Koslyn
This attorney is licensed in California.
Posted 17 days ago.
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As to your partial ownership to the development's trademark rights, I doubt individual owners' deeds include any undivided interest in intellectual property rights, and in fact your CC&Rs may prohibit you from using the trademarks in any manner injurious to the development. You may also have other restrictions in marketing your property that you have to adhere to, and you need to review your development's governing documents to see what you've agreed to do and not do.
However, subject to your contractual obligations, I think you can use the trademark in identifying your property for sale, and in fact you might not be able to accurately identify it without using the trademarked name. So what you have to do is include a disclaimer that your home is for sale by owner, and that the mark "Vintage Club" is owned by Vintage Inc.(or whatever entity owns the rights) to make you don't mislead any prospective buyers who are only lookling for Vintage Club properties for sale by the development. Disclaimer: Please note that this answer does not constitute legal advice, and should not be relied on, since each state has different laws, each situation is fact specific, and it is impossible to evaluate a legal problem without a comprehensive consultation and review of all the facts and documents at issue. This answer does not create an attorney-client relationship.
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