Cruz Law, PLLC

01/21/2026

Tomorrow I will be moderating a Webinar on 's https://www.sportslaw.org/events/webinar-series.cfm

09/27/2024

Yesterday was the Lucky 13th Anniversary of Cruz Law, PLLC

"The operation was a success, but the patient died."

07/22/2024

I was quoted in this Front Office Sports article. Yay!

The sport could be an unlikely beneficiary of the FTC’s noncompete ruling—and MMA fighters stand to gain big.

01/08/2024

From here until gametime I am consuming every pre-game show until gametime.

05/31/2023

05/18/2021

Quoted today in the Tuscaloosa News

An arbitrator has ruled that Deontay Wilder will get a chance to avenge his defeat against Tyson Fury, possibly this summer in Las Vegas.

02/25/2021

https://mmapayout.com/2021/02/25/nz-silver-fern-center-of-trademark-issue-between-city-kickboxing-ufc-and-rugby-team/

NZ Silver Fern center of trademark issue between City Kickboxing, UFC and Rugby team February 25, 2021 by Jason Cruz Leave a Comment Prior to Israel Adesanya’s return to the Octagon on March 6th, a potential trademark issue is percolating between his gym, City Kickboxing and New Zealand Rugby over...

10/23/2020

Oliver Luck seeks to restart case against Vince McMahon https://mmapayout.com/2020/10/23/luck-seeks-to-restart-case-against-vince-mcmahon/

08/12/2020

This past June, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that Booking.com, a travel reservation company could trademark its name. The ruling overrules the United States Patent and Trademark Office which determined that the name was “generic.” The United States Supreme Court determined that the name was distinct enough to trademark.

The dispute arose as the company attempted to trademark its name but was refused on the grounds that the name was “generic” as it was a term for a category of services. The addition of “.com” did not transform it into a protected trademark. The court relied in part on surveys that Booking.com refers to a particular company and not a general online hotel reservation service.

In general, trademark registration is likely of a mark if it is inherently distinctive as opposed to being “merely descriptive.” A descriptive term could be eligible for registration if it has obtained “acquired distinctiveness” or “secondary meaning,” something that must be proven. Booking.com presented an interesting question because it was denied registration on the basis of being generic. The USPTO argued that the addition of “.com” to the name did not provide any “protectable meaning” to an otherwise generic term.

The Court argued that the determination of generic is dependent on its meaning to its consumers.

The ruling is considered narrow in scope because adding “.com” to any generic term will not mean that the mark applicant will receive a registration. There is still the hurdle of proving that the mark has acquired distinctiveness and is associated by consumers with a specific source of goods or services.

The ruling does provide another layer of protection for brands that may have a presence online. Whether or not we will see an expansion in trademark registrations based on the ruling is something to monitor.

The link to the opinion is herehttps://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/19pdf/19-46_8n59.pdf

04/10/2020

Pro wrestler's character
subject of copyright infringement lawsuit related to Call of Duty video game https://mmapayout.com/2020/04/10/former-pro-wrestler-booker-t-survives-motion-to-dismiss-in-call-of-duty-copyright-lawsuit/

01/08/2020

My book, Mixed Martial Arts and the Law, is now on sale. Get yours today https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/mixed-martial-arts-and-the-law/