In 2007, an Italian jeans company actually convinced the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to trademark the word “Jesus” for them to be able to sell exclusively under the name in the United States. Today, the company is suing different startup clothing companies because they are using the word “Jesus” which they have already claimed. The defendants include Jesus Surfed and Jesus Up.
The trademark was first applied for in 1999 and it took eight years to convince the U.S. Patent and Trademark office to grant it. But not all countries have been receptive to their trademark requests. Turkey, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyztan, China, Switzerland, Australia, Norway, and Cuba have all denied the trademark of “Jesus.” The startup JesusSurfed.com is a ministry that also goes to different conferences to “spread the Word and to assist charities.”
Domenico Sindico, general counsel of intellectual property for Jesus Jeans’ parent company, said on the topic: “If somebody—small church or even a big church—wants to use ‘Jesus’ for printing a few T-shirts, we don’t care.” Isn’t that awfully generous of them? Thanks to the kindness of BasicNet SpA, owner of Jesus Jeans, we can actually use the name of our Lord in our clothing!
Read more: wsj.com
