Golden Knights, Army Sit Down To Negotiate Trademark Squabble

LAS VEGAS, NV - The Vegas Golden Knights and the Department of the Army have sat down at the negotiating table to resolve a trademark dispute over the expansion hockey team's name and team colors. In January, the Army moved to block the hockey team from registering the Vegas Golden Knights trademark.

The Army has contested that the hockey team's name and color scheme could dilute the U.S. Army Parachute Team's common law mark on the "Golden Knights" name. The Department of the Army filed a notice of opposition to the trademark application on Jan. 10. On Jan. 25, the two sides agreed to suspend the legal proceedings to attempt to negotiate a settlement.

The dispute stemmed from statements made by Vegas Golden Knights general manager George McPhee alluded to owner Bill Foley's West Point ties in a Washington Post news piece.

"Bill Foley is a West Point guy, sort of using those colors," Golden Knights general manager George McPhee said. "You know his history at West Point. You know about the classmates he had that he lost serving this country. So those colors mean a lot to us...," McPhee told the paper.

But Tony McShane, a partner with Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg, an intellectual property law firm, isn't sure how strong the Army's case would be in court.

"The stronger the mark, the further way you have to stay from it," McShane said. He added that since there are multiple Golden Knights sporting teams, such as the College of Saint Rose's mascot, that the Army's common law mark is "not that strong."

But what makes the decision to oppose the Golden Knights' trademark more than arbitrary, considering the mascot is used by other other teams, are the statements made by McPhee. Those statements could "blur the line" when it comes to the intent of the hockey team's logo and color scheme, McShane said.

"It's one of several things the Army can point to," McShane said. What's most likely, McShane said, is a resolution that the two sides can agree on. He said the compromise could consist of a change to the team's color scheme and a promise to not make pubic statements linking the hockey team with the parachute team.

"If I were the parachute team I'd expect them to change the team colors or some part of the uniform," McShane said. He said the incentive for the Golden Knights to want to make the change is to avoid a public relations mess that could result from a legal dispute with a branch of the military.

"These days, with the esteem with which we hold the military, they wouldn't want to be seen as doing something that would taint that," McShane said. "The Vegas Golden Knights will likely dig their skates in using the team name, but will end up doing enough things to make the change."

Image via Mark Tenally/Associated Press