Atlanta Peach Movers

TANA v. DANTANNA'S

16.07.10

TANA v. DANTANNA'S

DAN TANA, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
DANTANNA'S, an unknown business entity, GREAT CONCEPTS, L.L.C., a Georgia Limited Liability Company, DANTANNA'S CNN CENTER, LLC, a Georgia limited liability company, Defendants-Appellees.

No. 09-15123.

United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

July 15, 2010.

Before EDMONDSON, CARNES and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges.

ANDERSON, Circuit Judge.

This trademark infringement action concerns two restaurants, situated on opposite sides of the country, that share very similar names. Dan Tana, owner of Dan Tana's restaurant in Hollywood, California ("Plaintiff"), brought this action against the two limited liability companies that own and operate the Dantanna's restaurants in Atlanta, Georgia—Great Concepts, L.L.C., and Dantanna's CNN Center, LLC ("Defendants"). Plaintiff's complaint alleges that David Clapp, founder of the Dantanna's restaurants and managing member of the Defendants, intentionally selected and registered as a federal trademark a name for his restaurants that is confusingly similar to the name of Plaintiff's restaurant in Hollywood. The claims forming the basis of Plaintiff's complaint are false designation of origin, a theory of federal trademark infringement arising under § 43(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a) (Count I); deceptive trade practices under Georgia's Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, O.C.G.A. § 10-1-370 et seq. (Count II); fraud pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 23-2-55 (Count III); and the unauthorized appropriation of likeness, an invasion-of-privacy tort recognized under Georgia law (Count IV).

Source: Leagle.com