By Bill Parry
A federal court ruling has left both parties satisfied after a grueling 2 1/2-year lawsuit.
A Brooklyn-based organization called the Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club took the founder of the LIC Community Boathouse, Erik Baard, to court in 2011, suing for trademark infringement after he used the Boathouse logo on his Facebook page.
The Gowanus Dredgers were angry he used the page to disparage their leadership after a power struggle at the LIC Boathouse led to Baard’s eviction from the club he founded.
The LIC Community Boathouse, at 46-01 5th St. in Long Island City, offers recreational and educational paddling programs along the East River.
After a drawn-out trial in Brooklyn federal court, Judge Pamela Chen found no malice in Baard’s actions and that he had not infringed since he had changed the title of the Facebook page from LIC Community Boathouse to LIC Community Boathouse Founder.
“I am grateful and content that Judge Chen ruled in my favor,” Baard said. “It’s gratifying to win, but now it’s time to move on and return to more productive work and creating good things like HarborLAB and Gotham Orchards.”
HarborLAB is another boating club where Baard began offering programs in environmental education, stewardship and restoration. Gotham Orchards is a volunteer group he started that plants orchards in public spaces throughout New York City.
Baard represented himself in the lawsuit and found himself exhausted emotionally in the end.
“It became too much a part of my life, and when you’re under siege, it gets depressing,” Baard said. “It was a long, destructive detour they took me on. The whole litigation process really grinds you down.”
Dan Miner, district manager of Manhattan’s Community Board 6, was a witness in the case because he watched the formation of the LIC Community Boathouse as the vice president of the LIC Partnership.
“I saw how the Dredgers came in and shoved him aside and eventually took over the Boathouse,” Miner said. “He represented himself and he whupped them. It’s helpful when you have the truth on your side.”
So, why would the Gowanus Dredgers be pleased with Chen’s ruling?
Their attorney, Gerry Dunne, said, “The judge ruled overwhelmingly that the Gowanus Dredgers do control the LIC Community Boathouse and therefore they are allowed to bar him. The reason we did this was to keep him out of the Boathouse.”
Baard had entered into an affiliation with the nonprofit Dredgers so he could use them as a financial conduit, allowing the Boathouse to accept donations and purchase insurance.
After he stepped down as chairman in 2008 to pursue his other interests, like the Gotham Orchards project, he was on the Dredger board until they barred him in 2011, according to Dunne.
With the lawsuit over, Baard wants to turn the page.
“I have no desire to operate the LIC Community Boathouse again and have no inclination to get into personal attacks,” he said. “But I’ll continue to use the LIC Community Boathouse Founder to sound a drumbeat for reforms.”
Reach reporter Bill Parry by e-mail at bparry@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4538.
