Taco Bell Frees "Taco Tuesday" Trademark for All
Earlier this year, Taco Bell launched a coordinated effort to free the "Taco Tuesday" trademark owned by Taco John's. Though the legal battle was expected to take years, Taco John's, a regional TexMex chain in Wyoming, relented and released ownership of the saying, effectively throwing it into the public domain for anybody to use. Pam Waitt, the founder of TacoTuesday.com, praises both Mexican restaurants for their work in the matter.
"I am grateful for all parties involved, I believe Taco John's did the right thing, and I deeply respect that, Taco Tuesday belongs to everyone. Now restaurants around the United States can freely celebrate Taco Tuesday without fear of retribution," Watt said in a statement after Taco John's release was made public. "Restaurants depend on Taco Tuesdays to help their bottom line and millions of people love celebrating it. When something becomes as popular as Taco Tuesday, it cultivates a sense of familiarity and happiness among taco fans."
In a statement released by the chain, Taco John's CEO Jim Creel said the company decided to donate money to restaurant workers in need rather than paying lawyers to fight the trademark battle. "We've always prided ourselves on being the home of Taco Tuesday, but paying millions of dollars to lawyers to defend our mark just doesn't feel like the right thing to do," Creel said in the statement.
Instead, the Cheyenne-based restaurant as chosen to donated $100 for every restaurant it operates to an organization that helps restaurant workers in need. Taco John's currently has around 400 locations in operation across the United States. Creel challenged Taco Bell, which has approximately 7,200 locations, to do the same.
"People like tacos on Tuesdays. They just do," Taco Bell's initial filing to the United States Patent and Trademark Office read. "It's even fun to say: 'Taco Tuesday.' Tacos have the unique ability to bring people together and bring joy to their lives on an otherwise mediocre day of the week. But since 1989, entities associated with Registrant have owned a federal trademark for 'Taco Tuesday.' Not cool."