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History of all this - the blog
Letter from Joseph Miner #1 - You are here
Letter from Joseph Miner #2

Original letter to agents from Joseph Miner / All Cities Realty, Inc.

This section of our website is information is regarding a current "alleged" trademark infringement lawsuit against Re/Max All Cities Realty [ now Re/Max marquee partners ]. This Goliath and its agents seized our trademarked name. We sued both Re/Max All Cities Realty and its 1700 agents in two separate legal actions. Both actions are pending.

Within this area you will find information regarding the State and Federal legal actions, the written legal complaints, motions, and significant information on this Re/Max organization, its owners, founder and who we are dealing with.

All documents we have compiled and have made available within this area are PUBLIC INFORMATION and have been assembled through a variety of sources. All court documents are also PUBLIC INFORMATION.

All Documents for State and Federal Court, press releases, Re/Max fraud, FBI, and kickbacks moved to document index.

RECENT UPDATES - Click here

OPEN LETTER from Joseph Miner - President, All Cities Realty, Inc.

To all current and former CF Real Estate Loans, Inc. [DBA Re/Max All Cities Realty] agents and brokers:

Please take the time to read the letter as it will inform you about this law suit, and offer you some options that you may not be aware of. Also be sure to read letter #2 it will make you aware of some of the things going on behind the scenes.

For almost four long years we have been asking CF Real Estate Loans, Inc. to stop using our name ALL CITIES REALTY. For almost four long years our requests have fallen on deaf ears. This is the reason for filing our State and Federal legal actions.

If you have been an agent or associated broker, between August 2002 and the present, you will be affected by this legal action. If you were named on the DRE database as one of their agents, CF's agent roster that was provided to us by CF for that time period, or had your name displayed on their website you will be listed as a defendant. This affects every agent or associated broker, residential or commercial, during the time period quoted. If you have not been served with a summons and complaint to date, you will be getting one at some point.

We began using the name ALL CITIES REALTY in 1996. We filed DBAs and published the name. We have also registered the domain name www.allcitiesrealty.com, we have incorporated in California under the name ALL CITIES REALTY, Inc. and to top it off we were awarded a Federal Trademark for the mark ALL CITIES REALTY. We have done everything in good faith to legally protect our name. We have all documentation to prove this.

Lawsuits are not fun and we know that. We tried to avoid these law suits for three long years and finally filed the Federal action in the summer of 2005. We were forced to file the actions to protect our rights to the name and the mark, and additionally because we have been significantly damaged by these egregious, overt, and malicious actions.

We asked CF to STOP using our name many times and they would not even though we informed them of all our protection and our rights.

We HAVE NOT filed this action to harass or scare anyone. We have sent emails to advise people this is taking place. We have served people at open houses because it is legal to do so, and it is the easiest place to find a real estate agent. We have filed the actions because this is how the world works today. We have no other method of protecting ourselves and this is what "society" has determined the acceptable method to settle situations such as this.

We have done all this respectfully and discreetly, and will continue to conduct ourselves in that manner until the last summons and complaint is served.  You should note that when we served Re/Max at their offices, one of their management physically pushed and threatened us. We even had to call the police. 

We have followed all the rules. Although these laws protect everyone, they are especially there to protect the little guy from the big guy.

We are the little guy, however we have more than sufficient financial means to take both legal actions to the absolute end; until the jury foreman stands up and we slay Goliath. We will take the actions to the end if we are forced to do so.

We have a legitimate right to protect our rights under the law in this situation. We have played by the rules. CF has claimed to the Court we are "harassing" them, and the agents. Can you believe that???

We believe harassment is the 700 agents and brokers using our name for four years that should have NEVER been using our name - THAT IS HARASSMENT!

With all the agents that have come and gone over that time we have had to file on 1695 separate people! That is 1695 separate business cards, 1695 websites, 1000s and 1000s of flyers, signs, ads, emails and literally thousands Internet postings using our name which we NEVER wished to have associated with ANY FRANCHISE! Even I'm confused when I look for my own company on the Internet!

NOW THAT IS HARASSMENT, AND FOUR SOLID YEARS OF IT!

We are aware that each agent and broker is an independent contractor - not an employee of Re/Max.

As an independent contractor you run your own business and make your own decisions. YOU are responsible for your own actions, your advertisements, and whether you have violated our IP rights or the IP rights of another. (See options)

Read Re/Max de-identification guidelines. They clearly state each and every agent must be aware of Intellectual property rights and it is their responsibility to monitor these items. That not only goes for Re/Max but it goes for anyone's IP rights.

This document is a Re/Max document about Intellectual Property Rights. The document tells US that Re/Max should have been aware of our rights just as they are aware of their own. Actually they [Re/Max International] have a WHOLE BOOK on trademarks, trade names, and these Intellectual Property issues which means anyone running several Re/Max offices can not claim ignorance regarding these issues. Read the page on de-identification as it applies to IP rights in general. Re/Max de-identification guidelines

If you have used our mark or our trade name ALL CITIES REALTY in any unauthorized way, on your advertising materials, your business cards, your signs, your flyers, your web page, in your emails, or in any way that it dilutes our mark, or infringes on our Intellectual Property rights, our position is that you have damaged us, and you are responsible for those actions. We want you to know this.

A note about choosing your legal counsel

This is my personal belief and I am not an attorney. Please do not consider this legal advice.

My personal opinion is that in most situations "free" advice is not often the best advice. During legal actions, in most situations a "free" legal defense MAY NOT be YOUR best defense.

Would you rather have a public defender, or the dream team?

In other words, you get what you pay for. Additionally, any free legal counsel offered may be serving a different master and not keeping YOUR best interests at heart.

If you believe that your "free" legal counsel will be protecting someone else's interest first, and your best interests second - you should think twice, and consult an outside attorney, before you sign up for any free representation.

You may be standing alone in that courtroom with the finger being pointed at YOU by that free legal counsel. You will not be able to point the finger back at those you may have trusted unless you have your own attorney.

An attorney, who is working for YOU and only YOU, will give YOU your best legal defense. Free legal advice, or a free legal defense may not be YOUR best defense and you may have to give up some of your legal rights to get the free defense. If you have been asked to sign on the dotted line to gain your free legal representation, then read VERY carefully and consult at least one another outside attorney before you sign any of your legal rights away.

My opinion is that one should ALWAYS consult several attorneys and make an informed decision before choosing what path to take in a situation such as this. Attorney consultations are generally free.

Options


Sometimes when people are sued they claim to the court that their actions, infringements, or damages have something to do with another party.

For example: a driver is driving a new car with new tires. A tire blows out and that blowout causes an accident. After the accident, the driver finds out that the tire manufacturer made some bad tires, and the crash that he was in was caused at least in part by the tire company and their bad tires.

When party A sues party B and then party C; sometimes party C also sues party B. This is because party C believes that it is party B's fault they are in involved in the legal action.

This is called a CROSS COMPLAINT.

This may be the likely situation in the tire crash story above or similar situations where there are three or more parties in the legal action. As in the example used, there are 3 sides to this trademark and trade name infringement legal action: A, B, and C.

Sometimes, all the people, or some of the people who are damaged in a situation similar to this, locate each other, get together, and file a cross complaint. Sometimes individuals or small groups file a cross complaint on their own. Sometimes they know its best for them just to get their own attorney. No one will defend your rights better than YOUR OWN PERSONAL ATTORNEY who is associated with no one and defending no one but you and only you.

Like all the people who bought a certain car with bad tires; they band together and get their own attorney NOT associated with either the CAR company or the TIRE MAKE because that attorney represents THEIR PERSONAL BEST INTERESTS. Additionally, it is less expensive and easier, get one attorney to defend them, reply to the legal action, and also file a cross complaint.

[A], the driver, sues the tire maker [B], and sues the car maker [C]. The car maker [C] feels this was caused by the tire maker and also sues the tire maker in what is called a CROSS COMPLAINT because they have been damaged by using the bad tires made by the tire maker on their vehicles.

The tire maker, if found guilty, not only has to fix the tire problem but may have to pay the car maker as well because of the damage they have caused to the car maker's business, reputation, grief, financial loss etc.

Because the CAR MAKER has good legal counsel he knows that he can do this and it is very common in these types of situations.

AS STATED: CONSULT YOUR OWN PERSONAL ATTORNEY BEFORE YOU CHOOSE YOUR DEFENSE!

A FREE DEFENSE AN EXISTING PARTY MAY NOT BE YOUR BEST CHOICE!!!

Your attorney will advise you of your defenses and your options. You may consult many attorneys before you make any decision. Please do not follow any information given here as these thoughts are only my personal insights and ideas about the situation at hand.

Follow the direction of an attorney you hire to represent YOU and YOUR best interests

Serious issues you MUST think about... your defense a MUST READ.

Your Legal Defense #2
 12 Important questions you must ask before you count on a FREE defense!

Conclusion

I would personally like to apologize to you if this legal action is causing you any grief, discomfort, or potential financial loss.

This is not personal but is done as a last resort to protect our business from a predator who made the choice to stomp on the little guy. What they [this Re/Max franchise] have done is just plain wrong. Apparently they think they can slap a Re/Max trademark in front and take immediate possession of any other licensed trademark they wish. We don't think so. We don't think that is the way it works; otherwise all trademarks would be in constant jeopardy, and could be pirated by huge companies such as Re/Max, Wal-Mart, Century 21, or McDonalds on demand.

My personal opinion is that they [this Re/Max franchise] are creating a very bad public image situation for themselves and for Re/Max International - not to mention the agents and brokers who will flee in fear of being sued, or the negative image that they will be part of working with such an entity. As these two cases progress, they will make the spotlight more often.

It does not appear to me that the agents and brokers who are involved perceive the reality of this situation. The reality is that they are being sued. The reality is that this could last 5 years or more and if you have never experienced this situation before it will be a whole new experience for you; mostly negative. Just because you leave Re/Max does not mean the lawsuit goes away - it does not. The lawsuit will continue until there is an end. That could be a very long time. If you don't know the ramifications of being sued please ask an attorney or someone who has been sued – it’s not fun by any stretch of the imagination.

Thankfully, we believe our rights are protected by several laws as long as we have the money to battle it out in court. We do! And we will fight to the end! We are fighting for our honor and for what is right. We are fighting for all the little guys in business out there...  a big company can not just take your name because they like it.

It was NEVER our goal to file legal actions against 1700 people. It is an enormous task for us but we have the resolve and the financial means to complete it. There are certain things you must fight for in your life or people would take everything you have. We believe this is one of the times we must fight to the end.

We hope that this all is worked out soon so it does not evolve into a long multi-year legal battle, but it may not - and that would be a multi year battle for all of us - including YOU. We did our best to stop this before it came to this and we are sorry that CF would not abide by our requests or respect our intellectual property rights.

My personal opinion is YOUR best defense  =  consult YOUR own attorney.  An attorney that is going to look out for YOU and no one else.

There is a list of business litigation attorneys for Los Angeles in all of the online phone books. You probably want to find someone to talk with who is experienced in business litigation, but ask the attorney when you talk with them. Please get the best defense for you. Consultations are generally free. They may even take your case for free, who knows.

I hope this clears any questions you may have as to why this has occurred and what your options might be. I wish you all the best in the conduct of your real estate careers.

Note - Plaintiff ALL CITIES REALTY has done everything possible to legally protect itself

• 1996 – DBA ALL CITIES REALTY (Riverside County)
• 1996 – Domain Name ALLCITIESREALTY.COM (Advertised and attracted customers globally since 1996)
• 1997 – DBA ALL CITIES REALTY (Orange County)
• 1999 – DBA ALL CITIES REALTY (Orange County Corp.)
• 1999 – Corporation ALL CITIES REALTY, Inc. (California Corp. - take precedence over DBA names statewide)
• 1999 – Federal Trademark Filing (Searchable)
• 2001 – Federal Trademark ALL CITIES REALTY (National) Covers us nationally
• 2006 – State Trademark ALL CITIES REALTY (State of California) We got it just for good measure!

Federal trademarks are National protection for Trademark rights. We did not need a State Trademark.

ALL CITIES REALTY has been on the internet since 1996 clearly stating we are brokers serving ALL Southern California.

Check back for updates at www.remaxlawsuits.com

Joseph A. Miner
All Cities Realty, Inc.

IF YOU HAVE INFORMATION THAT YOU FEEL MIGHT BE HELPFUL TO OUR SIDE OF THIS CASE, or any questions that we may answer, AND YOU ARE NOT OTHERWISE REPRESENTED BY YOUR OWN ATTORNEY please feel free to contact the attorney who is our point of contact for the State of California Superior Court and Federal Court action:

PLEASE NOTE - IF YOU ARE REPRESENTED BY YOUR OWN ATTORNEY YOU NEED TO CONTACT HIM OR HER AND OUR ATTORNEYS CANNOT ETHICALLY SPEAK WITH YOU.

ATTORNEY CONTACT INFORMATION:

Law Offices of Jeff Sax
Jeffrey F. Sax
213.623.5700
jsax@saxlaw.net

NOTE - DO NOT consider anything I have said "legal advice". Please consult an attorney, or several attorneys and do what is absolutely the best for you. We want you to have the BEST defense in this situation that you can get.

END OF LETTER

NEW! - Re/Max Beach Cities MEGA FRAUD Case; the full DRE PDF version - Click here

Read for yourself the tale of conspiracy and fraud within the Re/Max Beach Cities Realty organization.
The Department of Real Estate lays out all the mis-deeds of Re/Max Beach Cities Realty and Bob Todd.

IF YOU HAVE INFORMATION THAT YOU FEEL MIGHT BE HELPFUL TO OUR SIDE OF THIS CASE, or any questions that we may answer, AND YOU ARE NOT OTHERWISE REPRESENTED BY YOUR OWN ATTORNEY please feel free to contact the attorney who is our point of contact for the State of California Superior Court and Federal Court action:

ATTORNEY CONTACT INFORMATION:

Law Offices of Jeff Sax
Jeffrey F. Sax
213.623.5700
jsax@saxlaw.net

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PLEASE NOTE - IF YOU ARE REPRESENTED BY YOUR OWN ATTORNEY YOU NEED TO CONTACT HIM OR HER AND OUR ATTORNEYS CANNOT ETHICALLY SPEAK WITH YOU.