Three Charities Sue Over Name Dispute

Three national health charities have filed a federal lawsuit in California that accuses a Los Angeles man of doing business under names similar to those of the health groups in order to confuse donors.

The suit by the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, and the Arthritis Foundation charges that the sound-alike groups infringe on the charities’ trademarks and have taken in several hundred thousand dollars from donors who have been deceived over the past year.

The lawsuit says that Kent Stryker, president of a Glendale company called Citizens Action Group, which is also named as a defendant in the suit, began doing business in 1997 under such names as National Cancer Society, National Heart Association, and Arthritis Association. Mr. Stryker also allegedly used the exact names of the three national charities that took him to court.

The lawsuit says that Mr. Stryker and a Los Angeles business colleague also charged in the suit, Doug White, set up numerous toll-free telephone numbers — and listed them with operator-assisted directory services — under names that were “confusingly similar” to the national charities.

None of those charged in the suit could be reached for comment.