Kentucky Lawyers Can Stop Worrying About the Guy Who Owns the 40-0 Trademark

Kentucky finished their season with a respectable 38-1 record and a trip to the Final Four. They fell just two games short of a historic, perfect, undefeated, 40-0 season. And that last thing – “40-0” – is what Kentucky was busy taking legal action over recently. Two weeks ago, Kentucky lawyers sent a cease and desist letter to Louisville lawyer David Son who was selling blue and white t-shirts from the website 40and0.com. Kentucky filed a trademark on “40-0” in February, but Son had been selling 40-0 items since October 2013. Via ESPN:

"“My client took all the steps he needed to take to establish ownership of 40-0,” Son’s lawyer, Brian McGraw, said. “There’s no evidence that the University of Kentucky owns any rights to 40-0.” McGraw said he has had no conversations with the university, which has demanded that all 40-0 products be pulled from his client’s site. “We are well aware of third parties attempting to capitalize on the historic season of the University of Kentucky men’s basketball team,” said Jim Aronowitz, general counsel for Fermata Partners. “As the University’s licensing agent, we are working to vigorously protect UK’s trademark rights in the marketplace from those that use the institution’s indicia without permission.”"

Unfortunately for everyone – including those of us who love stupid lawsuits over things like numbers and dashes in certain orders – Kentucky lost over the weekend, making the shirts completely pointless, and thus, quite lame.