[Archive 2005-10-29] Tom Cruise parody site defiant in face of Scientology threats, demands its day in court

Historical archive — originally published 2005-10-29. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

The Church of Scientology "cease and desist" order isssued last month to the New Zealand owner of a Tom Cruise parody website called scienTOMogy demanded they shut down the site, and transfer ownership to the Church, or face a lawsuit of up to $100,000.

On September 14, the Church's law firm, Moxon & Kobrin, responded via email that the scienTOMogy website domain was an infringement of their trademark that would cause a "likelihood of confusion" with their own, and thereby broke federal law. Specifically, the Church cited the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. � 1125(a).

The Lanham Act contains the federal statutes governing trademark law in the United States. The Church would have to prove factors such as "proof of actual confusion", "product types, proximity and marketing", "their respective appearance and meanings", and "(bad) intention behind selecting the mark".

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