EXCLUSIVE: Gerard Butler Sued By Evil Twin for $2M

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/blogs/thr-esq/gerard-butler-sued-evil-twin-43866

EXCLUSIVE: Gerard Butler Sued By Evil Twin for $2M

If there's any actor who should be able to pick the name of his production company without getting into legal trouble, it's Gerard Butler, right?

Butler, after all, was briefly a lawyer before going on to star in 300, Phantom of the Opera and Law Abiding Citizen .

But he's been sued for trademark infringement over the name of his production company.

Here's the beef: Butler and business partner Alan Siegel named their shingle Evil Twins. But there's another Hollywood company operating under the banner Evil Twin Prods.

According to the complaint, filed yesterday in federal court in Los Angeles, Evil Twin Prods was started by Kristen Armfield and Harri Mark in 1996. They have a registered trademark on "Evil Twin." According to Evil Twin's website, the entity has worked on promotional TV spots for High School Musical 3, The Dark Knight, and Coldplay's last album.

The lawsuit claims that Butler and Siegel announced their Evil Twins Entertainment in March 2008. Ever since then, the first Evil Twins says there's been confusion in the marketplace and it has received correspondence and telephone calls intended for Butler's Evil Twins.

The complaint also says that Butler has been made aware of the controversy and posted a note on his website: "DO NOT contact other Evil Twins or Evil Twin companies listed in Los Angeles."

The current version of Butler's website only admonishes people that there "is no 'productions', 'films' or any other words in the title of" his company.

The plaintiff is demanding an injunction and either actual damages or $2 million in statutory damages for alleged unfair competition.

Reached for comment, Siegel laughed and told us he has nothing to say at this time.

BTW, when Gerry and Alan first announced their company, there was confusion over at IMDB because of the older company.

At the time, I wondered why they would incorporate using such a similar name because any attorney would flag the problem for them and advise them of such.

I'm not an expert in IP (Intellectual Property) law, but I do know the basics. This doesn't seem to be just a frivolous lawsuit, from the limited facts that I know(especially if they registered their name).

Alan can laugh all he wants, and the other company may just want money to change their name etc. but I don't think this will just be dismissed. I imagine a compromise will be struck. JMO.

i'm with you, dallas. i'm surprised it took THIS long for this to happen. i know fans have been finding that "other" site and probably have been driving them crazy. i know of one girl who had thier link listed on her fansite as gb and alan's company and argued with me for a week when i tried to tell her that it was a DIFFERENT evil twins.

A judge might not laugh this off so easily, and I certainly remember all the confusion at the beginning as well. Then again, what's a couple million to movie star? Personally and this isn't taking sides (I'd say the same if the tables were turned)... I think the older company has a very legitimate beef. Why didn't they call it Butler/Siegel Productions or something like that? It's a less "nifty" name, but certainly not a bad one.

I did not know about the other company, but you'd think they would have done their research.

Sami, I hate when ignorant fans do that. Grrrr!

the really annoying part was that, at the time she had been a fan for about 3 months and argued with me ALL the time. she knew sooooo much more about g than i did pretty much all the time...despite my many moons of fandom. ah well....water under the bridge. that's all behind me now! Very Happy

Thank goodness you are with sane people now

We're sane?

um. sane? not sure about that one. heehee............

http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b210844_gerard_butler_busted_by_his_own_evil.html?

Gerard Butler Busted by His Own Evil Twin Today 1:15 PM PST by Gina Serpe

The plotline of a daytime soap opera or just another day in the life of Gerard Butler? Both, as it turns out.

The great Scot has been hit with a trademark infringement suit for having the misfortune of naming his production company Evil Twins Entertainment when something called Evil Twin Productions already existed.

This! Is! Sparta! Trouble!

PHOTOS: Movies From the Future!

The lawsuit naming the actor, who incidentally was a lawyer prior to his showbiz turn—albeit one, we're guessing, who didn't specialize in trademark law—was filed in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

"We just received notice of the lawsuit, are reviewing it thoroughly and are looking forward to a prompt resolution so that we can continue to focus on several exciting projects under development in our company," Butler's rep told E! News.

Evil twins really are nothing but trouble. Here's the deal:

Evil Twin Productions was formed by Kristen Armfield and Harri Mark back in 1996, when they also prudently though to register the trademark "Evil Twin." The duo has been laboring under the banner ever since, and not exactly under the radar. Included among their credits are promo spots for High School Musical 3, The Dark Knight and Coldplay's Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends.

Butler's Evil Twins Entertainment, on the other hand (which thanks to its decision to go plural may not technically be breaking any rules), was only formed in March 2008.

Confusion, apparently, ensued, and the sue-happy duo behind the Production company claims that they have since been inundated with calls from people looking to contact Butler's Entertainment organization.

Must've been pretty annoying: for the inconvenience (and alleged unfair competition), they're asking for an injunction on the name and are seeking $2 million in damages.

Dallas wrote:: The complaint also says that Butler has been made aware of the controversy and posted a note on his website: "DO NOT contact other Evil Twins or Evil Twin companies listed in Los Angeles."

His website? HIS?

DonnaKat wrote:: Why didn't they call it Butler/Siegel Productions or something like that? It's a less "nifty" name, but certainly not a bad one.

Like umm .... yeah it is! BS Productions ..... BS? Bulls_ _ _ _??!

greyeyegoddess wrote:: Thank goodness you are with sane people now

Que?

May I add that I remember the confusion at GALS and that there was mention of the other company at that time. So the only surprise for me is why it took so long for this to appear.

DonnaKat wrote:: We're sane?

sami_stardust wrote:: um. sane? not sure about that one. heehee............

pfffft!!!!

I guess its a good opportunity for the original ET company to sue now that Gerry is worth more money.It would be a great idea to change his company name to a Scottish metaphor like HIGHLAND PRODUCTIONS or PAISLEY PRESENTS.

I'm not suspect about the timing of this filing. It often takes time before a company knows that there is an infringing company and for any problems to emerge. The mere formation of Evil Twins may not have caused immediate problems. However, once they started moving forward with conducting business, producing and promoting their first project (LAC), things may have changed (as it was no longer or dormant legal entity).

Further, most lawsuits are not filed until after numerous phone calls, correspondance, letters, meetings, demand letters from attorneys, and other attempts at settling the dispute/issue are exhausted. This all takes time.

Lastly, most people don't want to incur the expense, invest the time, and deal with the stress of a lawsuit, unless they have to. So they drag their feet on commencing litiigation until they absolutley have no other choice but to move forward. So again, I'm not suspect of the timing of this lawsuit. I don't think it's indicative of motive or legitimacy of the lawsuit. There could be legitimate reasons for why it wasn't filed until now.

Just my two cents.

Dagnabbit (see Julie), you make sense, Dallas!

Update: There appears to have been a settlement between the two parties and the lawsuit was dismissed February 28, 2011.

There is a new listing on IMDB for Gerard Butler Alan Siegel Entertainment. And it is the production company that is listed as involved with Playing the Field. Guess they had to change their name from Evil Twins.....