Philadelphia’s Middle Child is heading to the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office after a judge refused to stop a new Las Vegas restaurant from using the same name, writes Michael Klein for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
In November, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed from restaurateur Matthew Cahn, who opened his first Middle Child location in October 2017. Four years later, he opened a more upscale offshoot called Middle Child Clubhouse.
In the lawsuit, Cahn sought to block the Las Vegas group from using the name. After dismissing the suit, the judge gave Cahn 21 days to resubmit an amended complaint, but the deadline ran out on December 16.
Now, Cahn is waiting for the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office to rule on the trademarks.
The Las Vegas group filed a trademark application in September 2022, while Cahn filed for Middle Child in January 2023, accompanied by a cease-and-desist letter to Nectaly Mendoza, leader of the Las Vegas group.
Whatever the result of the Patent & Trademark Office deliberation, both restaurants will retain their names.
“Things happen,” said Cahn. “It’s not the end of the world.”
Read more about the Middle Child lawsuit in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
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