A legal fight over Bayou Classic trademarks ended quietly earlier this year, with a federal judge declaring the Southern University System Foundation as the lawful and established owner of nationally televised football game’s marks and logos.
U.S. District Court Judge James Brady signed an order in early February, barring Gary Shelton—who was named a defendant in the case along with Andre Henderson of Baton Rouge—from continuing to use the Bayou Classic logo.
The annual football takes place in New Orleans and pits Southern University against its long-time rival, Grambling State University. Henderson, who had been a licensee of the Bayou Classic trademarks through the Collegiate Licensing Co., snagged several registrations related to the game in 2012 and 2013, years after they had been allowed to expire.
The foundation eventually learned of the expirations and filed paperwork with the Louisiana Secretary of State Office to correct the apparent oversight. It was denied because Henderson held the registrations.
Henderson was asked by the SUSF to cancel the registrations, which Southern considered improper. But as Daily Report previously reported, Henderson didn’t respond, possibly because he had assigned his registrations to Shelton in late 2013.
The foundation sued both Henderson and Shelton, who countersued and argued that Southern and Grambling were infringing on the trademark. The foundation’s legal counsel previously told Daily Report Shelton was “under the mistaken belief that registrations of the trademark somehow gave him the right to own the mark.”
“It is basic intellectual property law that registration of a trade will not grant Mr. Shelton ownership of the Bayou Classic trademark,” the foundation’s legal counsel said at the time in a prepared statement. “Perhaps it was an honest misunderstanding of the law. But neither Mr. Henderson nor Mr. Shelton has any rights to the mark.”
Brady agreed, saying in his order that SUSF, and not Shelton, is the lawful owner of the marks. Shelton’s registrations of the mark, the judge said, drew a false connection to Southern and Grambling and should not have been registered.
—Alexandria Burris
