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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
Courthouse News Service Courthouse News Service

‘Senorita Mexico’ Infringes, Trump Says

LAS VEGAS (CN) - Donald Trump's Miss Universe pageant, which also owns the Miss U.S.A. trademark, demands that a Las Vegas company stop operating its "Senorita Mexico" pageant for U.S. residents of Mexican origin.

Defendants Adan Perez and Luz Bolivar have promoted their beauty pageants in Las Vegas since 2004 under various, non-infringing business names, the federal lawsuit says. But in February, they began to use the names "Miss Mexico USA" and "Senorita Mexico USA." The defendants filed a trademark application and set up a Web site to promote the pageants, the complaint states.

Miss Universe sent a cease and desist letter, stating that the defendants' pageants would "dilute the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA marks as source designations for plaintiff's world-famous pageants."

The defendants are accused of displaying unauthorized copies of the Miss USA crown on their Web page, and using photos from a Miss Universe pageant, including photos of Trump posing with defendants, "in a deliberate attempt to create a false association between defendants and plaintiff's" pageants.

The lawsuit comes just weeks before the planned April 11 live broadcast of the Miss USA Pageant, to be held at the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino.

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