Florida Virtualschool v. K12, Inc.

773 F.3d 233, 2014 WL 6436644
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedNovember 17, 2014
Docket12-14271
StatusPublished

This text of 773 F.3d 233 (Florida Virtualschool v. K12, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Florida Virtualschool v. K12, Inc., 773 F.3d 233, 2014 WL 6436644 (11th Cir. 2014).

Opinion

JORDAN, Circuit Judge:

On October 10, 2013, we certified the following question to the Supreme Court of Florida:

Does Florida Virtual School’s statutory authority to “acquire, enjoy, use, and dispose of ... trademarks and any licenses and other rights or interests thereunder or therein” necessarily include the authority to bring suit to protect those trademarks, or is that authority vested only in the Department of State?

Florida VirtualSchool v. K12, Inc., 735 F.3d 1271, 1275 (11th Cir.2013). The Supreme Court of Florida rephrased the question as follows:

Does the Florida Virtual School’s statutory authority to “acquire, enjoy, use, and dispose of ... trademarks and any licenses and other rights or interests thereunder or therein,” and the designation of its board of trustees as a “body corporate with all the powers of a body corporate and such authority as is needed for the proper operation and improvement of the Florida Virtual School,” necessarily include the authority to file an action to protect those trademarks?

The Florida Virtual School, etc. v. K12, Inc. et al., 148 So.3d 97, 98 (Fla.2014). It then answered this question in the affirmative. Id. 1

Given the Supreme Court of Florida’s ruling, Florida Virtual School has the authority, and the standing, to file an action to protect its trademarks. We therefore, reverse the district court’s dismissal of Florida Virtual School’s trademark infringement suit against K12, Inc. and K12 Florida, LLC, and remand for further proceedings. 2

We thank the Supreme Court of Florida for its assistance with this case.

Reversed and Remanded.

APPENDIX

Supreme Court of Florida

No. SC13-1934

THE FLORIDA VIRTUAL SCHOOL, etc.,

Appellant,

vs.

K12, INC., et al,

*235 Appellees.

[September 18, 2014]

LEWIS, J.

This case is before the Court to .answer ■a question under Florida law certified by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit that is essential in determining an action pending in that court and for which there appears to be no controlling Florida precedent. We have jurisdiction. Art. V, § 3(b)(6), Fla. Const. In Florida VirtualSchool v. K12, Inc., 735 F.3d 1271, 1275 (11th Cir.2013), 1 the Eleventh Circuit certified the following question:

Does Florida VirtualSchool’s statutory authority to “acquire, enjoy, use, and dispose of ... trademarks and any licenses and other rights or interests thereunder or therein” necessarily include the authority to bring suit to protect those trademarks, or is that authority vested only in the Department of State?

Because the statute quoted by the Eleventh Circuit includes additional language that is relevant to our resolution of the issue presented, and that federal court specifically stated that our analysis is not limited, we rephrase the certified question as follows:

Does the Florida Virtual School’s statutory authority to “acquire, enjoy, use, and dispose of ... trademarks and any licenses and other rights or interests thereunder or therein,” and the designation of its board of trustees as a “body corporate with all the powers of a body corporate and such authority as is needed for the proper operation and improvement of the Florida Virtual School,” necessarily include the authority to file an action to protect those trademarks?

For the reasons expressed below, we answer the question in the affirmative.

FACTS AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION

In the order dismissing the action filed by the Florida Virtual School against K12, Inc., and K12, Florida, LLC (collectively “K12”), the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida provided a brief history of the school in question:

In 1997, Plaintiff [the Florida Virtual School] was founded under the name “Florida On-Line High School.” Plaintiff is an educational institution whose mission is to provide online courses to students throughout the United States and foreign countries. In June 2000, Plaintiff became an agency of the State of Florida pursuant to Section 228.082 of the Florida Statutes. In 2002, Section 228.082 of the Florida Statutes was amended and renumbered as Section 1002.37 of the Florida Statutes. At this time, Plaintiffs name was changed to “Florida VirtualSchool.”

Fla. VirtualSchool v. K12, Inc., No. 6:11-cv-831-Orl-31KRS, 2012 WL 2920998, at *1 (M.D.Fla. July 16, 2012).

The opinion of the Eleventh Circuit provides the relevant facts of the action filed by the Florida Virtual School against K12:

Florida VirtualSchool was “established for the development and delivery of online and distance learning education.” Fla. Stat. § 1002.37. By January of 2002, it was using the marks “FLVS” and “FLORIDA VIRTUAL-SCHOOL” in connection with its online *236 education program, marks which it registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. In 2003, the State of Florida began a pilot program that allowed private companies to compete with Florida VirtualSchool and serve a limited number of students. K12 — a national online education provider — was part of that program.
Florida VirtualSchool alleges that K12 infringed on its trademarks by causing actual market confusion in a variety of ways. First, K12 adopted the name “Florida Virtual Academy” and “FLVA” for its services in Florida. And, after the pilot program became permanent, it also began using the name “Florida Virtual Program” and “FLVP.” Second, K12 has paid for a sponsored listing on http://www.flvs.com — a website owned by Name Administration, Inc. — to divert customers away from Florida Virtual-School’s website (http://www.flvs.net). Third, the website for K12’s Florida Virtual Program is similar in both design and color scheme to the website for Florida VirtualSchool.
On May 18, 2011, Florida Virtual-School sued K12 for trademark infringement under both the Lanham Act, see 15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq., and Florida common law. [n.2] K12 filed a motion for summary judgment or, alternatively, to dismiss for lack of standing.
[N.2.] Florida VirtualSchool also brought a claim of cyber-piracy against Name Administration, Inc., but voluntarily dismissed that claim.

Fla. VirtualSchool, 735 F.3d at 1272.

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