Tax preparation service H&R Block filed a lawsuit against Block, Inc. (formerly Square, Inc.) for trademark infringement on Thursday, CNBC reported.
H&R Block is suing Block, formerly Square, over its new name
H&R Block says that it’s causing consumer confusion
H&R Block says that it’s causing consumer confusion
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
“Today’s filing is an important effort to prevent consumer confusion and ensure a competitor cannot leverage the reputation and trust we built over more than six decades,” said H&R Block president and CEO Jeff Jones in a press release.
H&R Block claims that Square’s new name competes directly with Block in several areas of financial services, including a recently purchased tax service named Cash App Taxes — previously Credit Karma Tax — a $0 tax filing service similar to H&R Block.
H&R Block said that the company experienced numerous indications that consumers are drawing a link between the companies due to their names being similar.
Block, Inc., co-founded by Jack Dorsey, announced the company’s name change on December 1st, saying it “acknowledges the company’s growth.” The company cited numerous inspirations for the name change in a Twitter post following the announcement, saying that the name represents the neighborhood blocks where the company finds its sellers, a blockchain, block parties full of music, obstacles, and more.
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