Forums
Find the updated and expanded article post here: https://birdcageheights.com/2024/09/10/the-edgewood-voice-disclaimer/ .
Edit: 9/16 mostly rewritten.
Shane Hill
This is evidence of the Edgewood Homeowners Association strength of mark.
Remember, factual evidence of marketplace recognition is a significant component of a mark's protectability. Not that it would ever matter with this descriptive weak mark.
Members should be absolutely livid that the board spent a significant amount of your money to 'protect' this. Protecting valuable business IP clearly was not the real concern. The real reason is to chill the valid exercise of the constitutional rights of freedom of speech and petition for the redress of grievances.
This gave me a laugh:
https://birdcageheights.com/the-edgewood-neighborhood/
The disclaimer text in the search result snippet is not an accident. It's SEO.
"SEO—short for search engine optimization—is about helping search engines understand your content, and helping users find your site and make a decision about whether they should visit your site through a search engine."
https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/seo-starter-guide
We don't need the disclaimers. We are providing disclaimers as a courtesy. We could literally sell real estate at edgewoodhoa.org without disclaimers. We aren't in the real estate business. We are in business of fixing the Edgewood Community, while advocating for homeowners. Hmm. Home Owner Advocacy. I like the sound of that.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares that there has been a disturbing increase in lawsuits brought primarily to chill the valid exercise of the constitutional rights of freedom of speech and petition for the redress of grievances. The Legislature finds and declares that it is in the public interest to encourage continued participation in matters of public significance, and that this participation should not be chilled through abuse of the judicial process. § 425.16
Shane Hill