The rapper/business mogul Jay Z was named as a defendant in a $600 Million lawsuit by a man who claimed he trademarked the name “Brooklyn Nets” 10 years before Jay and developer Brett Ratner moved the NBA team to the Brooklyn.
According to RadarOnline:
“The Plaintiff, Dr. Francois de Cassagnol, filed a pro se complaint with the Eastern District of the State of New York on December 9, 2013, asking for a juried trial over the matter — and $600 million in damages, at least. According to court documents obtained by Radar, de Cassagnol claims that the NBA, Jay Z, and developer Bruce Ratner ”fraudulently conspired” to use “loopholes” in the U.S. Patent Office so that they could use a term he says he registered more than ten years ago.
Indeed, documents submitted as evidence show that de Cassagnol filed applications in 2012 for “The Brooklyn Nets Entertainment Logo,” which was first used in the State of Louisiana back in 2003. He even claims that before the team moved to Brooklyn, he spoke with officials at the New Jersey Nets organization and the NBA who assured him that the team would not use the term “Brooklyn Nets,” but would most likely opt for “New York Nets.” Unfortunately, he claims, “It was pure mismanagement of the facts.” In 2012, the team announced they would go by the name “Brooklyn Nets,” and ever since, de Cassagnol has been enmeshed in a legal struggle trying to get what he says is his due.”
