Claims That Credit Union Defrauded USPTO to Continue

Charges that a credit union committed fraud before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office can continue, the Southern District of California ruled Feb. 5.

Citizens Equity First Credit Union’s statements during registration proceedings on when it began using a trademark and whether it thought the mark was likely to cause confusion were false, the court said.

San Diego County Credit Union owns over 40 trademark registrations related to its services, including the mark “It’s Not Big Bank Banking. It’s Better.” Citizens Equity First Credit Union owns a registration for the mark “CEFCU. Not A Bank. Better,” and uses the common ...