Taco John's abandons "Taco Tuesday" trademark, ending dispute with Taco Bell

The "Taco Tuesday" trademark dispute between Taco Bell and Taco John's has come to an end. 

While people across the globe have long enjoyed tacos on Tuesdays (and other days), the term "Taco Tuesday" has actually been trademarked for more than 40 years by Taco John's, a fast-food chain from Wyoming. The company on (when else?) Tuesday announced that it would abandon the United States Patent and Trademark Office registration for the popular term. CEO Jim Creel said in a statement that paying millions to defend the trademark didn't "feel like the right thing to do."

"As we've said before, we're lovers, not fighters, at Taco John's," Creel said. 

In May, Taco Bell filed a challenge with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, urging the agency to cancel the trademark so that it would be "freely available to all who make, sell, eat and celebrate tacos."

"Taco Bell believes 'Taco Tuesday' should belong to all who make, sell, eat and celebrate tacos," the company said in a statement at the time. "In fact, the very essence of 'Taco Tuesday' is to celebrate the commonality amongst people of all walks of life who come together every week to celebrate something as simple, yet culturally phenomenal, as the taco."

While Taco John's has abandoned the trademark fight, the company did issue a challenge to Taco Bell and other competitors. Instead of spending money on the trademark dispute, Taco John's is pledging $100 per location, or about $40,000, to the nonprofit Children of Restaurant Employees (CORE), which provides financial aid to restaurant workers when they, a spouse or their children face a life-altering crisis. 

"Let's see if our friends at Taco Bell are willing to 'liberate' themselves from their army of lawyers by giving back to restaurant families instead," Creel said. 

He encouraged Del Taco, Taco Bueno, Taco Cabana, Jack In The Box and mom and pop taco shops to donate, too.

Taco John's, founded in 1969 in Cheyenne, has almost 400 restaurants across 23 states. Taco Bell operates more than 450 corporate locations across the U.S. and has more than 6,600 franchises nationwide. The chain has sold tacos in its restaurants for almost 60 years. 

There remains one legal challenge to the term "Taco Tuesday." Gregory Hotel, the parent company of Gregory's Restaurant and Bar in New Jersey, has been the holder of the "Taco Tuesday" trademark in New Jersey since 1979, according to its website. Taco Bell in May filed a petition to cancel that trademark as well.

"This is a shared victory with taco allies everywhere. Taco John's decision to join the movement and liberate Taco Tuesday means countless businesses big and small, restaurants, and taco vendors can now embrace, celebrate and champion 'Taco Tuesdays' freely," Taco Bell CEO Mark King said in a statement.

"When tacos win, we all win," King said.

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• Taco Bell