Erik Kabik/Retna/ErikKabik.com
Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2011 | 11:42 a.m.
Another trademark infringement lawsuit has been filed in a dispute between the Palazzo resort on the Las Vegas Strip and a Texas clothing company.
The Palazzo hotel-casino, owned by Las Vegas Sands Corp., in 2009 sued Palazzo Design Corp. of Houston, charging the Houston company was threatening litigation over the Las Vegas Palazzo's sale of T-shirts and clothing items bearing the hotel's name.
At that time, the Las Vegas casino disputed the Houston company's claim it had exclusive rights to "Palazzo" clothing.
However, that suit was dismissed last year after the Las Vegas Palazzo didn't file proof that it had served the defendant for undisclosed reasons.
On Tuesday, Palazzo Design Corp. sued Las Vegas Sands in federal court in Houston, charging Palazzo Design has been using the "Palazzo" trademark for the past 14 years and that in November 2007 it was awarded a federal trademark registration for the Palazzo mark for certain clothing wear.
The suit charges Las Vegas Sands and its Palazzo hotel-casino have been using the Palazzo name since December 2007 in connection with their hotel-casino and retail services and the Palazzo hotel-casino website.
"Defendants have continued to use the mark Palazzo with the full knowledge and in disregard of Palazzo Design Corp.’s prior use and ownership of the mark and registration, with the intent to cause public confusion or deception, reverse confusion, benefit from the goodwill of the mark and/or interfere with Palazzo Design Corp.’s exclusive use of the mark," Tuesday's lawsuit charges.
The suit asks for an injunction barring the Las Vegas resort from using the Palazzo name in the sale of clothing, an order requiring the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office to refuse registration of Palazzo hotel clothing trademarks and unspecified damages.
Las Vegas Sands does not comment on pending litigation.
Records indicate its trademark applications have said there's no likelihood of confusion between its clothing and the Texas company's clothing. Some of the Las Vegas Palazzo clothing includes stylized "The Palazzo Las Vegas" logos matching the resort's main logo.
Court records indicate Palazzo Design offered in 2008 and 2009 to license or sell the Palazzo clothing trademark to Las Vegas Sands -- but the filing of the lawsuit indicates that hasn't happened.
With top accommodations, first-rate entertainment, high-end shopping and a slew of acclaimed chefs, the Palazzo has positioned itself as one of the most luxurious resorts on the Strip.
More than 3,000 all-suite rooms start at 740 square feet and are decorated in a modern, yet classic, Italian style. Each room features a sleeping area, with a king or two queens, and a sunken living room area with floor to ceiling windows.
A cathedral ceiling tops the Palazzo casino, while a second 80-foot dome brings natural light to the property's lobby. The 105,000 square foot casino features more than 2,000 slots and 80 table games but lacks the stale smell of cigarettes, as the property is LEED certified with smoking off limits in most of the Palazzo — including 50 percent of the casino floor.
Dining at the Palazzo is among the best of the Strip, starting with Wolfgang Puck's CUT. Chef Simon To serves up authentic Chinese cuisine at Zine, while Sushisamba combines Brazilian and Peruvian flavors with Japanese techniques. At LAVO, club-goers can dine on Mediterranean dishes before heading upstairs to the bath house-inspired nightclub.
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