Stone Lion Capital Partners, L.P. v. Lion Capital LP
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
746 F.3d 1317 (2014)
Lion Capital (defendant) held registered trademarks for "LION CAPITAL" and "LION" for capital investment consultation; Stone Lion (plaintiff) filed an intent-to-use application for "STONE LION CAPITAL" for investment advisory services, and both parties described their actual clientele as sophisticated. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board rejected Stone Lion's application as likely to cause confusion, and Stone Lion appealed, arguing its actual services were narrower than the board found and that the board wrongly considered unsophisticated potential customers.
Whether, in determining likelihood of trademark confusion, the analyses of the scope of services and the consumers to whom such services will be provided are limited to what is contained in the existing registration and the new application.