Suit Filed In Federal Court
NEW YORK (November 9, 2015) – The National Urban League Affiliate Services Appeals Committee has affirmed the Board of Trustee’s July decision to disaffiliate the Urban League of Greater Dallas.
In an official opinion handed down last week, the Committee said the National Urban League had “ample reason” and “adequate grounds” to disaffiliate ULGD.
According to the opinion, “ULGD has engaged in conduct that not only violates the Affiliation Agreement, but also threatens the reputation and goodwill of National Urban League and its other affiliates.”
Additionally, the National Urban League has sued the affiliate for breach of contract and trademark infringement. The federal lawsuit, which was filed in the Northern District of Texas, seeks injunctive relief and damages under the Lanham Act to stop the use of and protect National Urban League’s federally registered service marks, name and symbols.
The National Urban League Board of Trustees in July authorized the disaffiliation in response to several serious concerns about the fiscal mismanagement and organizational governance of the group.
The decision means the Dallas-based affiliate is “completely severed” from the programs of the National Urban League and may not use the term “Urban League” as part of its name. As a result, ULGD has lost the license to use the Urban League brand, marks and goodwill in any manner or for any purpose. ULGD is required to cease and desist from communicating on behalf of the Urban League or representing to any person or entity that it acts on behalf of the Urban League or is connected in any way to the Urban League Movement. ULGD’s Urban League Guild and Young Professionals are no longer a part of and must cease operating as the auxiliaries of National Council of Urban League Guild and National Urban League Young Professionals.
The Terms of Affiliation is the contract which governs the relationship between the National Urban League and its affiliates. National Urban League suspended all sub-grants to the affiliate earlier this year after it failed to meet programmatic, management and administrative requirements.
The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization dedicated to economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of living in historically underserved urban communities. Founded in 1910 and headquartered in New York City, the National Urban League spearheads the efforts of its local affiliates through the development of programs, public policy research and advocacy. Today, the National Urban League has 95 affiliates serving 300 communities, in 35 states and the District of Columbia, providing direct services that impact and improve the lives of more than 2 million people nationwide. To learn more about the National Urban League, visit www.nul.org and follow us on Twitter @NatUrbanLeague.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Teresa Candori
(212) 558-5362
tcandori@nul.org
