In the Name of the Father: Sink Jr. Can't Promote Firm in Familial Dispute
A trademark dispute involving father and son attorneys who share the same name is moving forward in South Carolina federal court.
August 15, 2019 at 05:57 PM
3 minute read
Attorney George Sink Jr. (Courtesy photo)
A lawyer with the same name as his attorney father will have to stop promoting his law firm—at least for now.
A South Carolina judge has granted a preliminary injunction preventing George T. Sink Jr. from marketing his law firm, George Sink II Law Firm. Sink Jr. is being sued in district court by his father, George T. Sink Sr., who claims that the name of his son’s firm violates the trademark of his own firm, George Sink P.A. Injury Lawyers.
In the initial complaint, filed April 25, Sink Sr. claimed the name of his son’s new law firm infringes on his firm’s trademark and could lead to confusion with clients or on internet searches. The preliminary injunction was granted Aug. 9.
The complaint alleged that soon after Sink Jr. was fired from his father’s firm, the son, who is also a personal injury attorney, opened a new firm named after himself, which has been confusing both for clients and internet traffic. After the new firm opened, Google suspended the website for the older firm’s website over confusion about two separate business listings for George Sink. Sink Sr.’s firm said it took two weeks of work to ensure that Google searches recognized the firms as separate entities, during which the elder Sink’s firm appeared lower in search results and lost positive Google reviews.
“The George Sink marks are famous, at least throughout South Carolina and Georgia,” the suit said. When the complaint was filed, the elder Sink’s firm said it had registered its name as a trademark for the benefit of potential consumers, who should not be confused about from whom they are receiving services.
“The goal is not to keep ‘Ted’ Sink from practicing law,” the statement said. “However, when consumers look for George Sink PA Injury Lawyers, they must be confident they will find the firm they seek.”
In Sink Jr.’s response, filed May 29, he said that any market confusion over the firms was the fault of his father. The son said his father’s firm actively promoted him as “George Sink Jr.” when he was still working at the firm and that he has as much right to go by George Sink professionally has his father does—and that includes the name of his firm.
“If there is market confusion, which the defendant rejects, the confusion was manufactured by the plaintiff,” Sink Jr. said.
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