GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK — Leann Murphy Baker, Founder, Veterans Protected, Inc., has called on Andrew Beshear, Attorney General, State of Kentucky, to cease and desist using her registered Veterans Protected trademark to promote his “Mission Veterans Protected” initiative. Ms. Baker has made repeated requests to Mr. Beshear to stop infringing upon her trademark. Only after Ms. Baker was forced to retain an attorney and send Mr. Beshear a formal cease-and-desist letter did a representative of Mr. Beshear’s office finally respond, but that response only refers vaguely to a “2018 veteran-specific program,” and does not even acknowledge Mr. Beshear’s use of the “Mission Veterans Protected” name.
Ms. Baker said, if he continues to ignore her requests, she will take further action against Mr. Beshear, as well as veterans’ groups and organizations that have promoted and benefited from their association with the Mission Veterans Protected initiative. These include, but are not limited to, Vietnam Veterans of America, Kentucky State Council, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion of Kentucky, the National Association for Black Veterans, the Association of American Retired Persons (AARP) Kentucky, and the Epilepsy Foundation of Kentuckiana.
Ms. Baker became aware of the “Mission Veterans Protected” initiative, which was launched by Mr. Beshear in partnership with more than thirty partner organizations, in May 2018. Mr. Beshear and his partners held numerous events promoting the Mission Veterans Protected initiative, and posted photos of these events to various Web and social media pages, showing Mr. Beshear and his partners prominently displaying and promoting the Mission Veterans Protected name. Ms. Baker immediately contacted Mr. Beshear’s office to resolve the matter, but she never received a substantive response to any of these inquiries. Ms. Baker also reached out to several of Mr. Beshear’s partners, with no resolution.
On January 16, 2019, Ms. Baker’s trademark counsel, Jerome DeLuca of Sage Patent Group, sent a letter explaining the issue and requesting that Mr. Beshear and his partners stop using the Mission Veterans Protected mark. “The unauthorized use of the Veterans Protected mark by you, your office, and your partners, is highly likely to confuse consumers as to whether Ms. Baker and Veterans Protected, Inc. are the providers of the services offered by you, your office, and your partners under the Mission Veterans Protected mark,” Mr. DeLuca wrote.
The letter further explained how Ms. Baker has worked tirelessly to help senior veterans. This includes reporting fake veterans’ charities to the appropriate agencies; assisting veterans and their families in handling paperwork for issues related to the Department of Veterans Affairs; representing them before VA hearings; and obtaining legal, medical and other services for them. Ms. Baker has also personally taken homeless veterans to shelters, made house calls for veterans who are terminally ill, and helped them with everyday needs.
Ms. Baker remains eager to resolve the dispute.
For more information on Veterans Protected, Inc., call (516) 531-7619 or visit www.veteransprotected.com.
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About Veterans Protected, Inc.
Based in Garden City, New York, Veterans Protected, Inc. helps veterans in obtaining veterans’ disability benefits. Its agents review the claims file and performs a comprehensive audit, which also examines the veteran’s service record and other documents to ensure they receive the full amount of compensation they deserve. The firm is owned and led by Leann Murphy Baker, who has 20 years of experience providing consulting services for local government and paralegal services for law firms and in-house counsel and is individually accredited by the Office of General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. For more information, call (516) 531-7619 or visit www.veteransprotected.com.
