Who currently owns the Card My Yard trademarks as of October 1, 2020?
Card_My_Yard Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
The Franchise Agreement gives you a license to operate a Card My Yard business under the mark "Card My Yard" and to use any future Marks we authorize.
Our Predecessor, Card My Yard, LLC, applied for registration of the following Marks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") on the Principal Register, and as of October 1, 2020, our Parent, CMY Holdco, LLC, owns the following Marks. At the appropriate times, CMY Holdco, LLC intends to renew the registrations and to file all appropriate affidavits.
Source: Item 13 — TRADEMARKS (FDD pages 46–48)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Card My Yard's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, as of October 1, 2020, CMY Holdco, LLC, the Parent company of Card My Yard, owns the Card My Yard trademarks. Card My Yard, LLC, the Predecessor, initially applied for registration of these marks with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). CMY Holdco, LLC intends to renew the registrations and file necessary affidavits to maintain the trademarks.
This means that while franchisees are granted a license to use the "Card My Yard" mark to operate their businesses, the actual ownership and control of the trademarks reside with CMY Holdco, LLC. This is a common arrangement in franchising, where the franchisor retains ownership of the brand's intellectual property. As a franchisee, you must notify Card My Yard of any infringement of the Marks or challenges to their use. Card My Yard has sole discretion to take action regarding infringements.
Card My Yard also has the right to substitute different trademarks for the Marks if the Marks can no longer be used, or if Card My Yard determines, in its sole discretion, that the substitution will be beneficial to the System. If Card My Yard does, it may require franchisees to discontinue or modify their use of any Mark or use one or more additional or substitute Marks at the franchisee's expense. Franchisees cannot use any of the Marks as part of their corporate or other name and must follow Card My Yard's instructions for identifying themselves as a franchisee and for filing and maintaining the requisite trade name or fictitious name registrations.
Card My Yard derives its rights to the Marks and the proprietary Business System know-how from a nonexclusive perpetual license (the "Intercompany License") between Card My Yard and its affiliate, CMY Holdco, LLC (successor-in-interest to Card My Yard, LLC). The Intercompany License grants Card My Yard the right to use the Marks and the proprietary information related to the Business System, such as the know-how and the Manuals, for the purpose of licensing them to franchisees and fulfilling its obligations under the Franchise Agreement.