A federal judge dismissed one legal action The Medieval Times filed a lawsuit against its union last year, accusing the group of trademark violations over its name and logo.
In one (n Opinion In the lawsuit released Thursday, the judge said the dinner theater chain failed to prove that the union, called Medieval Times Performers United, caused “confusion” among consumers and led people to believe that the union was somehow supported by the company become.
“The court concludes that no plausible likelihood of confusion exists,” wrote Judge William J. Martini of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
When the company filed its lawsuit against the group in October 2022, the company was widely mocked by union supporters on social media. The union accused Medieval Times of trying to silence it through litigation and filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board.
Medieval Times argued that the union had abolished its medieval images and devalued its brand.
“The elements contained in the Medieval Times Performers logo (e.g. castle, swords, old script style text) all resemble elements of Medieval Times branding and medieval decoration, which are clearly intended to evoke Medieval Times’ unique image,” said the company claimed.
However, Martini noted that consumers were unlikely to associate the union with the company through the logos.
“Although both use red and yellow to some extent (in the logos and costumes), ‘Medieval Times’ is written in different stylized fonts and colors,” Martini wrote in his initial statement reported by Bloomberg law. “The Medieval Times Mark, in contrast to that, is written in yellow or red font [union] Logo in black font.”
“In sum,” he added, “neither the direct comparison nor the overall impression are confusingly similar.”
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Instead, he said the union’s use of the Medieval Times name served a logical purpose: “to identify the union as employees of Medieval Times.”
The lawsuit is part of a larger battle between Medieval Times and its union, which is pushing for higher wages and stricter safety standards at the company’s castles.
The knights, squires, actors and stable hands at Medieval Times’ Lyndhurst, New Jersey location became the first unionized last year. They were soon followed by their colleagues at the castle in Buena Park, California. The company has nine locks in the United States and one in Canada.
Although they use the name Medieval Times Performers United, the workers are represented by the American Guild of Variety Artists, a union that includes the Radio City Rockettes and artists at Disneyland. The AGVA called Medieval Times’ trademark lawsuit “a grotesque attempt to retaliate against workers who have exercised their legally protected right to form a union and bargain collectively.”
Workers at the Lyndhurst and Buena Park locations are trying to negotiate initial contracts with the company. The workers in Buena Park were on strike since February and accuses Medieval Times of retaliation and other unfair labor practices.
Although the trademark lawsuit was dismissed, Medieval Times managed to obtain the union’s TikTok account switch off by filing an intellectual property complaint with the social media giant. NLRB prosecutors recently filed a complaint against Medieval Times over the TikTok ban, claiming it violates labor law tried to muzzle Employees.
