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Brothers sue brothers over use of the family name
May 21st, 2009, 4:21 pm · 49 Comments · posted by Sarah Tully
Mel and Gary Trudell
Brothers sued brothers in a nasty dispute over the use of the family’s last name in competing Orange County mattress businesses.
Mel and Gary Trudell, owners of Anaheim-based Custom Comfort Mattress Co., filed a trademark-infringement lawsuit against two brothers for opening stores called Trudell Brothers Mattress Co.
Custom Comfort trademarked “Trudell Mattress,” which is stamped on their products.
The oldest brother, Mark Trudell, has gotten out the case by changing the name of his Costa Mesa store. But another brother, Maurice Trudell, is fighting to keep his surname on his Laguna Niguel store.
“It’s my last name,” Maurice Trudell said. “My parents gave it to me. I don’t intend on changing it.”
The lawsuit, filed in March in federal court, claims that the rival brother is creating confusion in the market by building on the reputation of Custom Comfort.
Maurice Trudell
“The name Trudell and Custom Comfort are somewhat synonymous,” said Matt Trudell, the third youngest brother.
Custom Comfort has always promoted the company as a family business.
Coming from a family with 10 siblings, two brothers worked at a mattress company as teens for part-time jobs and later opened their own company in 1992, Custom Comfort, growing to include a manufacturing plant and six Orange County stores. Fourteen family members have worked there. Six family members showed up to vouch for the family’s reputation in a meeting with a reporter.
(The parents are deceased.)
“We have a wonderful history. We’ve always helped each other out,” said Matt Trudell, a real estate agent who previously worked for Custom Comfort.
Together, the family used to gather every Christmas and on other holidays.
But Maurice and Mark Trudell said the invitations stopped coming to them years ago, and they rarely talk to their siblings.
“I don’t think the family has ever really had a loving relationship, period,” Maurice Trudell said.
But other family members said the two brothers were always outsiders, as proven by the dispute.
Maurice Trudell, the fifth-oldest child, said he allowed his brothers to use the back of his building to launch Custom Comfort but didn’t work directly for the company.
Mark Trudell said he learned the trade from Custom Comfort founder Marty Trudell but verbally agreed to take his mattress businesses outside of Orange County. When Marty Trudell retired, Mark Trudell figured he was free to open stores here in 2003.
That’s when the family feud escalated.
Fed up with his brothers, Mark Trudell renamed his Costa Mesa store when he recently moved.
“We wanted our name out there,” Mark Trudell said. “And probably, to be honest, some of it was out of spite because the harassment was unbearable.” Mark Trudell said he got out of the lawsuit because of health and financial reasons.
Early this year, Maurice Trudell, with Mark Trudell’s help, opened a store in Laguna Niguel.
The dispute turned even uglier with both sides hurling accusations of illegal signs, inferior products, harassment and misuse of the family’s name. The police have been called. Gary Trudell said his brothers are trying to get Custom Comfort to buy them out — allegations Maurice Trudell denies.
The feud got so bad recently that Gary Trudell took out a restraining order against Maurice Trudell. A hearing is set for Tuesday, May 26.
This isn’t the first time that family members have sued each other over surnames in high-profile cases.
Hustler Magazine publisher Larry Flynt sued his nephews for using the last name on their adult films. Winemakers Ernest and Julio Gallo had a legal battle against their brother over his cheese company. Zale Corp. sued the founder’s grandson for having the name in his jewelry business.
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o brother! GROW UP!!! WHY IS THIS EVEN NEWS!
Ha Ha well boys your beds are horrible, hated every nights sleep because of your mattresses..
What you meditate on, the things you fill your mind with, negitive thoughts and talk…You will end up holding exactly that in your hands. You get what you give out. Phillipians 4:8 read it all you Trudell brothers. You focus toooo much on exactly what we are NOT to focus on. Just sell your product for what it is nothing more nothing less. Do not bad mouth anyone or anything to make your self or your product apper to be better. Just sell your product leave everyone else out of it. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Speak the true truth not the lies you feed to the public. Look, You now are holding in your hands what you have in the past meditated and focused on. You spoke negitive, you now get negitive back!
Custome Comfort makes the best mattress in the world!! I love mine. They use cotton not foam.
Two words: Sealy Posturepedic
Apparently, somone is not sleeping on a comfortable mattress.
I do not know what kind of family this is that would file law suits against each other ,I cant even think that i would do that to another family member , When i see this sort of behavior it is usually over money and greed . I have bought from Mark Trudell in the past and was very happy with my purchase but after reading this story i dont think i would buy from any of them . Grow up and let our courts take care of real problems
I agree! I will never buy from them again!!! Shame on you for behaving like 2 yr olds!
Does anybody know if this is the same family that operates/operated Trudell Moving & Storage in HB?
Maurice Trudell operated Trudell Moving & Storage in HB..
Maurice is a bully who likes attention and always wants to stir the pot.
I guess every family has one of them…. Marty, Mel and Gary run a great family operation, no games just A GREAT product.
I hope they run that Maurice out of town..
Thanks. They did a great job on my move, at any rate.
Re: Trudell Moving and Storage
No sympathy for the Trudell that owns this company. When I moved two years ago, they made promises they didn’t keep and also broke the drawer of a very expensive armoire. At first they said they would fix it, and then they changed their minds. I wouldn’t trust a person or company that goes back on their word.
I spent a ton of money on a custom comfort and the thing started falling apart less then 2 years later. Let them fall apart, just like my mattress!!
Amen to that I bought one for my son after his back surgery and it didn’t even last 6 mths and I had to buy another mattress somewhere else and it’s the best-he’s had it now for 4 yrs and it feels and looks brand new.
I went to this place when I needed a new mattress. They wanted double the price of everywhere else. I got a great mattress elsewhere for half the price and it’s been great for the past 5 years.
Really? I brought quotes from two other stores, and they beat them all.
Same here! I shopped around before I bought mine. I have had it for four years. Once I month I flip it and rotate it and it is still looking and feeling brand new! Also it has a life time warrenty!
It’s nice to see that in these hard financial times, two fake frowning guys are fighting it out with a dude in a funky Hawaiian shirt, instead of being thankful they’ve got customers at all.
I hope they can find some common ground and get along. How I wish I had my brother here on this earth; he was killed in a car accident in 1967..
i have never heard of this company or the brothers
Losers, all of them
Anthony, I agree with you, me too never heard of them? Luckily they sell mattress what if they sell guns and ammunitions.
Many years ago the Simmons Family was sued by Simmons Mattress Company and the family one that case because it was their last name. The Smaller company used the name “W. Simmons Mattress” in Southern California for 40 years. The little brother will win on the same grounds, it is his name.
The general public had no clue who was behind Custom Comfort and never would of made the connection with Trudell Brothers Matress
Company was the real owner of the company before this article.
The claim is weak as 99% of the public would never make the connection and the other Trudell’s never made the name known to the public. Custom Comfort cannot claim rights to something they are not using in trade. Custom is known as Custom.
It is a sad morning in our house , We do not know Gary,Mel or Maurice Trudell , We do know Mark Trudell and feel sorry he has to go thru this legal situation , Mark has done so much for our community and it ’s non profits that the newport/mesa residents should be thankfull that we have business owners like him .
We purchased two Custom Comfort beds last year so after reading this i checked the label on my mattress and it has no mention of Trudell Brothers on it , I think those two sad faced guys need to grow up .
YOUR KILLING ME LARRY!
I always tear the label off, despite the government warning!
My name is Anita i am a single mother with two kids , I lost everything i own in a fire last june and had to move into a new apartment , I went to see Mark Trudell to get the three new beds that i needed and did not have all the money it took to get what i needed Mark told me to pay him when i could as he said he did not want to see us sleeping on the floor . In Aug. i went to pay him for my beds and was asked if i had everything in order now and told him not yet , Mark told me that the beds where his gift to me and buy my kids school clothes or what ever i needed to make my house a home . I did not even know he had brothers but they should be thankfull that they have one that is so giving .
Thank You
Anita
Moral of the story: Either copyright your surname (which isn’t gonna happen) or copyright a name somebody else can’t use. Every jerk out there is somebody’s brother. In this case, it was their own.
I agree with the above comment , Why would someone waste the courts time with something this stupid . It sounds to me that the two sad faced guys don’t want competition.
I grew up with the Trudell’s. Maurice has always had the, I can do it better attitude, or my brother’s and idiot and doesn’t know what he’s doing! It is about greed and fighting for position in a large family. Overall the Trudell family have been a great and solid group. They give to the community, they also turn out a great product for the price.
The post talking about mattress falling apart. The low price economy mattresses do wear down pretty quick. I personally think that the name does not make the business. Custom Comfort has graced my Pennysaver front page for many years. I have purchased many beds from them. They earned my business. Now if Maurice wants my business he will have to earn it. I am not just going to buy from him because his store name is Trudell!!!
Life is too short, you are your brothers keeper. Unless of course you wish to remain Kane and Able!!!
Custom Comfort is known among consumers and in the marketplace as Custom Comfort, not Trudell Brothers. So I don’t see how the brothers that own Custom Comfort can sue the ones that are running Trudell Brothers. I don’t see anywhere that the ones who are operating Custom Comfort have copyrighted or trademarked “Trudell Brothers.” Were it not for this story, I wouldn’t have known that the Trudells even own Custom Comfort. This is a family feud in my opinion, and I think the court will see this.
Why don’t they all just sleep on it?
just a scandalous family in general. especially Mel and Gary….they believe in good ol’ bait and switch tactics.
If Gary and Mel own the trademark, the other guys can’t use it. Simple law. The other brothers could have chosen any name for their new company, yet chose to ride on the backs of Mel and Gary’s success. Slimey at best. Just because my last name is Ford, does not give me the right to open “Ford Motor Company”. Different scale, same story.
All the beds in my home are CCMC and they’ve been great. Never a problem, even during back surgery recovery. I’ll stick with the honest guys!
You could start the Ford Car Company. As long as it’s your name! You might have to use your first initinal or name! Coka Cola - Pepsi Cola, Goodyear Goodrich…Simmons Mattress - W. Simmons Matress. They have all been to court over these isues. The brother (Maurice Trudell) will prevail.
Actually there is a major difference, Mr. Ford. As you are aware a company involved in international trade is already called, Ford Motor Company. The name is clearly used in trade and thereby trademarked even without any form of government registration.
However, Trudell name is not used in trade and therefore not protected by trademark even if it is on file with the Patent Office. It only holds the protection if the name is used in trade and is know by the public.
In the case of Custom Comfort they are clearing attempting to squat on the name and bully others into giving up their right to compete in a fair market. Maybe they need to spend the same money on marketing and not on attempting to close the doors on business.
I will not be shopping with any business that wants to bully others around in order make money. I purchased my sons mattress earlier this year and it was a little over 1500 and I am glad I did not spend it at Custom Comfort. Special thanks to the blogger for telling the readers about their business practices.
Looks like friends from both sides are talking up and hyping their buddies and bashing the other guy in these threads.
So who do we believe? Ask your friends and family on people who have bought beds from these guys, I know people who have bought from both places and I have made my own opinion on it by listening to their experiences and visiting each place. Custom Comfort has been around a lot longer while Trudell Mattress is brand new, but one of these companies truly has a much higher satisfaction rating.
Everyone here, (who is not truly related to one side or the other) needs to form an opinion for themselves and ask around to friends and family on who they bought beds from. This is the best gauge on what you can believe - not any of the yahoos on here.
This article is not about quality of a product or service by either Custom or Trudell’s but the right to use a name that according to prior comments has not been used or is not known in trade.
However, many readers are adding a personal opinion in that it is an immature action of Custom Comfort to attack a brother (family member) over his business name. It is a family issue that does not belong in the Court.
Next Sit n Sleep will sue Larry Mattress for using the abused accountants name.
Custom Comfort is doing one thing and that is placing itself in the Court of Public Opinion as the bully and that is the last thing any business should want on the front page of news.
buy at sams or costco and let them all suffer the cost of petty greed
their cheaper too!
What a stupid article..Who cares its only a mattress store there not any differnt than those middle eastern rugs stores that keep changing new ownership every month. I wouldn’t shop here I would rather buy it at Costco where it’s cheaper and no drama or bait and switch sales tactics..
This guys look like idiots in their photo.
These guys must have alot of money to throw around, I was in a case like this in the 80’s . We opened an auto repair business using our last name my uncle sued me because he was in the same line of work and we had the same last name , Two years and a ton of money down the road i was able to keep my name . The real winner in all of it was the lawers .
can’t we all just get a long
TRUDELL BROTHERS, COME ON YOU GUY’S STOP FIGHTING PUT . TO REST. WE LOVE YOU LISA AND MELINDA
REALLY!
This is news , Family fights have no place in the news or the courts.
Now i know where not to shop for a mattress
I will never buy from them again…shame on all of them for being so greedy! I am a single mother of 3 not getting child support (or welfare)and busting my behind for my children…I wish I could afford to throw money around. Instead of suing my family I would be greatful just to be able to not have to struggle!
While I appreciate the hard work and dedication of the Trudell Brothers to build a successful business, this is a seriously sad statement about GREED in our society today. Money does funny things to families and it is a disheartening statement about today’s society.
Over the years i’ve heard nothing but nice things about Mark Trudell and his generosity, like the lady above said…
It’s clear that Gary and Mel are now trying to capitalize on the good name that Mark MADE it, no help from G&M or CC. Shame on them!
Now that their CC stores are on the rocks, e.g. their Costa Mesa store is for lease, they are desperately grasping at any lifeline, even if it takes down their brothers and their OWN family name in the process.
A contemptible act of greed, pettiness, evil…unbelievable.
Shame on Gary and Mel! And terribly over-acted mugging for the camera, haha! Pathetic.
I will NEVER step into a Custom Comfort store!