IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURTFOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIAJOHN N. XEREAS, )2520 13th Street, NW, Apt. 7, )Washington, DC 20009 ))Plaintiff, ) CIVIL ACTION NO. 1:12-cv-456-RWR)v. )) JURY TRIAL DEMANDEDMARJORIE A. HEISS, )GEOFFREY O.S. DAWSON, )RIOT ACT DC, LLC, and )SQUIID, INC., ))Defendants. )
AMENDED COMPLAINT
As his Amended Complaint in this action, Plaintiff John N. Xereas (“Plaintiff” or“Xereas”), by his undersigned attorneys, alleges as follows, upon actual knowledge withrespect to his own acts and upon information and belief with respect to all other matters.
NATURE OF THE CASE
1. This is a civil action to remedy acts of,
inter alia,
infringement of anunregistered trademark pursuant to Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1051
et seq.
; federal unfair competition; misappropriation; conversion; breach of contract andof the covenant of good faith and fair dealing; fraudulent inducement; conspiracy todefraud; tortious interference with contractual relations; unjust enrichment undercommon law; cybersquatting; defamation; and libel.2. Plaintiff brings this action because Defendants, individually and inassociation with each other and/or third parties, have willfully infringed the RIOT ACTtrademarks owned by Plaintiff; have engaged in unfair business practices; have
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2unlawfully misappropriated numerous RIOT ACT domain names and other domainnames; have deprived Plaintiff of the rights and benefits of his ownership of his RIOTACT trademarks and domain names; have breached the covenant of good faith and fairdealing; have prevented Plaintiff from receiving personal and business email directed tohim at his johnx@riotactcomedy.com email account; have conspired to defraud Plaintiff;have engaged in cybersquatting, have been unjustly enriched as a result of theiractions; and have engaged in both written and oral communications with members ofthe entertainment industry and the general public, including RIOT ACT fan clubmembers, agents, event planners, and others that falsely represent that Plaintiff’semployment was terminated due to incompetence and/or dishonest business practices.
JURISDICTION AND VENUE
3. Jurisdiction is predicated upon 15 U.S.C. § 1121, 28 U.S.C. § 1331 and28 USC § 1338(a) and (b), and jurisdiction supplemental thereto.4. This Court has supplemental jurisdiction over the claims in thisComplaint,which arise under the common law of the District of Columbia pursuant to 28U.S.C. § 1367(a), because the claims are so related to the federal claims that they formpart of the same case or controversy and derive from a common nucleus of operativefacts.5. Defendants are each subject to this Court’s personal jurisdiction becausethey reside in and/or operate and transact business in the District of Columbia, can befound in this District, and have committed the acts complained of herein in this District.6. Venue is proper in this District pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b) and (c)and § 1400(a); because Plaintiff is located in this District; Plaintiff’s claims arise in this
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3District because a substantial part of the events giving rise to the claims occurred in thisDistrict; and Defendants are doing and have done business within this District.
THE PARTIES
7. Plaintiff John N. Xereas is a resident of the District of Columbia with aresidential address at 2520 13
th
Street, NW, Apt. 7, Washington, DC 20009.8. Defendant Marjorie A. Heiss (“Heiss”) is a resident of the District ofColumbia with a residence at 1359 28
th
Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007. She is anattorney and member of the District of Columbia Bar.9. Defendant Geoffrey O.S. Dawson (“Dawson”) is a resident of the Districtof Columbia with an address at 4905 Potomac Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20007.10. Defendant Riot Act DC, LLC is a Limited Liability Corporation organizedunder the laws of the District of Columbia.11. Defendant Squiid, Inc. is a Delaware corporation with an address at 409Colesville Manor Drive #2, Silver Spring, Maryland 20904.
STATEMENT OF FACTS
12. For at least the past 17 years, Plaintiff Xereas has managed comedy clubsand been involved in the comedy business in and around the Washington MetropolitanArea.13. In the late 1990s, Plaintiff Xereas conceived of the name RIOT ACT as atrademark for use in connection with his business as a comedy event organizer andcomedy club talent scout, as well as for the name of a future comedy club Plaintiffintended to create, as the name of a record label devoted to comedy acts, and as thename of a potential television show about comedy clubs.
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