Taylor Swift sued by Utah Theme Park Evermore Over Trademark

Evermore, a fantasy-themed amusement park in Pleasant Grove, Utah, is suing Taylor Swift for trademark infringement on her latest album of the same name. According to court documents seen by Pitchfork, the lawsuit seeks damages for millions, plus all legal fees, and claims that disclosing Swift’s record has led to confused visitors and negatively affected the park’s search capability on Google. Claimants also claim that the Swift release infringes the park’s merchandise designs and album covers for their original soundtracks.

The lawsuit was filed on February 2 in a United States District Court in Utah. It claims that after the announcement of everAt the launch (which took place on December 10, 2020), guests began to ask “whether the Evermore album was the result of a collaboration between Evermore and Taylor Swift or some other type of relationship”, as the human resources director at park in court documents. The suit also includes photos of merchandise from the park, whose trademark was allegedly infringed by Swift.

Swift’s team denied the charges in a letter submitted to the court, referring to the case as “unfounded”. “Simply put, the Swift parts did not infringe their client’s trademark,” says the letter. “It is inconceivable that there is any likelihood of confusion between your client’s theme park and related products and Ms. Swift’s music and related products.” The letter also points out that the sale of items from Evermore Park, such as “little dragon eggs, guild patches and a small dragon mount”, are not similar to the products sold on the Swift website. The artist’s team rejected Evermore Park’s demand that they “stop and give up on [the] use of the EVERMORE brand. “

In a statement to Pitchfork, a Swift spokesman added:

The fact is that this frivolous complaint comes from Ken Bretschneider, founder and CEO of an experience park and according to Utah Business, “In June 2020, at least five lawsuits were filed against Bretschneider and the Evermore group by major construction companies such as Sunroc, AGC Drywall and Construction, Geneva Rock, Mountain Point Landscaping, EME Mechanical, Kreativ Woodworks and NFH Distributing (Beehive Brick and Stone). “

The companies claim that “they owe between $ 28,000 and $ 400,000”. Utah Business says, “He owes millions of dollars in construction, mechanics and landscaping fees to workers across the valley who have not yet been paid” … with “a collection of more than 20 construction guarantees on the Evermore estate.” The real intention of this process must be obvious.