Nassau County sued for ‘Intime’ trademark infringement
The Theodore Roosevelt Executive and Legislative Building in Mineola, which serves as the seat of Nassau County government, is seen here on June 26, 2012. Credit: Amy Onorato
A Canadian software company has filed a federal lawsuit against Nassau County, arguing that it holds the trademark for the name of the online system the county uses to manage the time records of its employees.
Since 2008, the county has used the acronym “Intime” — Integrated Nassau Time Management for Employees — to refer to its online system for calculating employee work and leave hours.
InTime Solutions Inc. of Vancouver, British Columbia, which develops software used by many local governments across the country for employee scheduling, owns the registered trademark “INTIME.”
On Wednesday, the company filed a trademark infringement, dilution and unfair competition lawsuit against the county in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District. InTime Solutions is asking the court for unspecified damages to its reputation and name.
The lawsuit says Nassau is “intentionally trading on the substantial goodwill” created by InTime Solutions and that Nassau’s “inferior website and personnel scheduling software and services creates a likelihood of confusion, mistake and deception.”
Nassau County Attorney Carnell Foskey said Nassau “does not comment on pending litigation. However, the claim is baseless.”
Michael Sepe, a Rockville Centre attorney representing InTime Solutions, did not respond to a request for comment.
According to court documents, InTime Solutions raised the trademark concerns with the county in a May 2013 letter that said the two time management systems were “virtually identical in appearance and are identical in sound.”
Company attorneys followed with letters to county officials in July 2013, October 2013, May 2014 and October 2014. Each time, the firm called on Nassau to “permanently discontinue” its use of the Intime name.
Christopher Leimone, a lawyer with the county attorney’s office, rejected the company’s request in an April 2015 letter. Leimone wrote that Nassau had not committed trademark infringement because its time management system is not used “in commerce in connection with any goods or services.”
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
