Whiteway Deli and the Lawsuit

If you haven't heard about this ridiculous lawsuit against Whiteway Deli, it's something you you should read.

Basically the owner of the Whiteway building/corner believes that no one can possibly use the name Whiteway unless they are renting space in his building.

Since the owners of Whiteway Deli moved a couple of blocks down, he decided to sue them for copyright infringment.

There's some confusion over whether George Martin, president of Whiteway Realty Co. is suing themover the use of Whiteway because of the corner or because of the realty company.

He tried to squeese 5 grand a month from the owner of the deli, Sam Salem, for use of the name.

Whiteway, where it's known, is almost considered a micro-neighborhood within Riverside. Personally I think it's like penalizing a restaurant called Brooklyn Diner for not being in Brooklyn...

Here's the most pertinent part of the article--the meat of the thing:

Carolyn Herman, who teaches trademark law at Florida Coastal School of Law, said if a trademark case got to trial, the burden of proof would be on Martin. He would have to show not only that he was using the name first but also a likelihood of confusion over what goods and services each business is providing.

"Is anybody going to think that Whiteway Deli is now Whiteway Realty, or that Whiteway Realty is now Whiteway Deli?" she said. That's why, for example, Delta Faucets and Delta Air Lines don't infringe on each other's trademarks, Herman explained.

Whiteway Realty registered a state trademark on the name Whiteway Corner in 2006, but by then the deli had been operating nearly 80 years. There was a Whiteway Corner Inc. formed a year before the deli opened to develop Park and King, but that company dissolved in 1943, state records show.

The owner of the Corner estimates that he's spent $100,000 on marketing the name Whiteway Corner.

You know what's sad? Whiteway Deli is far more well known than Whiteway Corner. Because the food just is that good.