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Legal Question - Using "City + Service" in Title When It's Competitor's Company Name

by Jeff Snyder
4 replies
  • SEO
    • |
Hello,

I offer local SEO services and my client recently forwarded me a "Seize and Desist" e-mail from a competitor regarding her website title.

Here's what's going on (I'll change the city and company names around to protect my client but the concept is the same)

My client received an e-mail from a competitor who owns the company "Maui Chiropractic, P.A.".

My client - who we'll call New Life Chiropractic, LLC - holds the #2 spot for "Maui Chiropractic". She is directly below the competitor who sent us the e-mail.

New Life Chiropractic's website title is:
"Maui Chiropractic - New Life Chiropractic, LLC | Family Chiropractor in Maui, FL"

I spoke on the phone with the owner of Maui Chiropractic, P.A to understand his request. He claims we are "advertising" on his company name and directly profiting off the name and reputation of his company.

He knowingly chose to name his company a commonly searched phrase and has scared all of the other chiropractors into removing it from their title (as he proudly pointed out).

His request is that we remove the phrase "Maui Chiropractic" from our title. According to him, legally we can use it on our website content but cannot use it anywhere it would show up in Google. Of course, if we don't do this he is going to contact his attorney/secretary of state and the legal battle will begin.

I personally think it's outrageous that he thinks he can be the only person to have a commonly searched phrase in his website title. I would prefer not to change the title but it is certainly not worth the costs of a legal dispute.

Has anyone dealt with anything like this before? Any attorneys in the group have any insight?

Thanks!
Jeff
#city service #company #competitor #legal #question #title
  • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
    Honestly, I would not really listen to anyone's opinion on here. You should consult with an attorney. I think he is wrong about this, but I am not an attorney. If the term was a registered trademark, it might be different, but even then because it is a line of business and town name I'm not sure how that would work.

    Really, discussing this with an attorney is the only way to be safe about it.
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  • Profile picture of the author ArcherWylde
    Are you using the competitor's name in the domain name? Is his name trademarked?

    If the competitor's name is not in the domain name i.e. --> www.competitor's name.com

    Then there's not much that can be done about it. I could make the title and description of my site anything I want. For example I could call the title of my website "Apple IPad 3" if I'd like. The description could read "Best place to buy Apple IPad 3's".

    You could probably even get away with a sub domain like: www.your website.com/competitor's-name

    lol at the frivolous lawsuits of a sore-loser competitor
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  • Profile picture of the author eb219
    If he says you can use it on your website content, then WOW...how is this your problem if the content shows up in Google??? To cover yourself, you might want to appease them and show that you've acknowledged their request in good faith by changing the title.

    You could simply add 'Services' or 'Information', or maybe 'Services & Information' after 'Maui Chiropractic'. It would generalize the term into a geographic one.

    In a court of law, it often comes down to intent. Since the intent is for your site to rank geographically, you should be clearly communicating this. I would leave no room for accusations.

    While I'm not an attorney, and none of this is legal advice, if it were me, I would simply tell the competitor in writing that at no time has there been any intent to use or capitalize on their business name, and that you have acknowledged their request by updating the phrase with a general geographic term ... which is the reason you're using it in the first place, right?
    Signature

    "Do or do not. There is no try." -Yoda

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    • Profile picture of the author Jeff Snyder
      Originally Posted by MikeFriedman View Post

      Really, discussing this with an attorney is the only way to be safe about it.
      I agree. Left a message with him, I'll reply with updates.

      Originally Posted by ArcherWylde View Post

      Are you using the competitor's name in the domain name? Is his name trademarked?
      My client's domain is hercompanyname.com. His name is not trademarked, it is registered with the secretary of state is "Maui Chiropractic, P.A.".

      Originally Posted by eb219 View Post

      You could simply add 'Services' or 'Information', or maybe 'Services & Information' after 'Maui Chiropractic'. It would generalize the term into a geographic one.

      In a court of law, it often comes down to intent. Since the intent is for your site to rank geographically, you should be clearly communicating this. I would leave no room for accusations.
      Intent is the way I was looking at it too. We never intended in any way to profit or gain from his name or reputation. He intentionally named his company to profit off a common search phrase.

      To your point of adding "Service" to the title, I actually suggested the same thing on the phone with him. "Okay, we'll change it to Maui Chiropractic Services". He adamant this infringed and profited off his brand because the two words were still together.

      While I feel like the guy is just being a bully and he has much less of a legal stronghold than he thinks - my client and decided to comply with his request as it's not worth any potential battle. But I can't wait to unseat him @ #1 for his own "company name".

      I did reach out to my attorney to pick his brain on this so I'll post on here if I learn anything useful.

      Thanks for sharing your opinions
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