Wynn Resorts asked a federal judge in Las Vegas Friday to defer its request for a temporary restraining order to halt construction of the $4 billion Resorts World Las Vegas over alleged trademark infringement in the building’s design.
In a statement, Wynn Chief Communications Officer Michael Weaver said company attorneys asked U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro to delay ruling on its request in order to give Resorts World time “to satisfy Wynn and the Court that any design different from the design Wynn accuses of infringement will not resemble the design of the Wynn.”
A new hearing was set for Jan. 29.
In December, Wynn Resorts sued Resorts World, which located across the Strip from Wynn Las Vegas and Encore, claiming the building is similar to the company’s two Las Vegas hotel-casinos and violated its “architectural trade dress.”
According to the lawsuit, Wynn Resorts believes the under-construction Resorts World is “misleading the public into falsely believing that it is affiliated with, sponsored by or associated with (the company), when it is not.”
A week ago Resorts World developers answered the lawsuit, saying the development is in the early stages of construction and the hotel-casino complex “will look dramatically different from Wynn’s properties, dispelling any suggestion that a reasonable consumer could confuse the two resorts for each other.”
Resorts World called the lawsuit a “heavy-handed, holiday-timed filing” that was directed at shutting down construction of a “business competitor.”
Weaver said in a statement, “It is Wynn’s desire that a design can be agreed to in the next two weeks, as expressed at the hearing, so that construction can continue, and no jobs are interrupted or terminated.”
Resorts World currently has 1,500 construction workers employed at the site. The 3,000-room hotel-casino is expected to open in late 2020 on the 87-acre site which once housed the Rat Pack-era Stardust.
In an emailed statement, Michael Levoff, senior vice president of public affairs and development for Resorts World owner Genting, said the company, “Intends to present additional evidence demonstrating that Resorts World Las Vegas will be clearly distinguishable from Wynn’s design through construction and completion. Genting remains confident that once all of the relevant facts are presented the company will defeat Wynn’s baseless claims.”
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgamingreports.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
