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LDS Church sues ‘Mormon Stories’ podcast, alleges trademark infringement
ABC ^ | 21st April 2026 | Amelia Hobson

Posted on 08/25/2026 8:54:36 AM PDT by Cronos

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has filed a lawsuit against the ‘Mormon Stories’ Podcast and its creator, alleging that it unlawfully uses trademarked and copyrighted material.

On April the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints filed a lawsuit against Open Stories Foundation and John P. Dehlin, who operates the podcast ‘Mormon Stories’. The Church argues that they have used the name Mormon since its founding nearly 200 years ago and that Dehlin’s branding will cause some people to believe ‘Mormon Stories’ is associated with or endorsed by the Church.

“Defendants adopted a blue MORMON STORIES logo with a light-rays design prominently used by the Church, showing Defendants’ intent to capitalize on and increase confusion,” the lawsuit states. “Defendants’ logo was calculated to imitate the Church’s logos by using confusingly similar color, font, and other design elements.”

also alleges that they approached Dehlin and Open Stories Foundation about the supposed infringement and that the defendants agreed to make some changes. They argue that the defendants refused to include statements in podcast episodes to mention that they are not affiliated with the Church.

announced that it was moving away from the name ‘Mormon’ in 2018 and asked to be referred by its official name as “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”. However, they state in the lawsuit that the public continues to associate the word and branding of ‘Mormon’ with the Church.

Additionally, they state that they have used specific Light-Rays Design Marks in all official communications and should thus have common law rights to those symbols. They also have trademark registrations for many of their branding materials, including the ‘Mormon’ mark.

In the lawsuit, alleges that Mormon Stories has created their content by reproducing copyrighted materials from the Church for their own content, including images.

(Excerpt) Read more at abc4.com ...


TOPICS: Current Events; General Discusssion; Other Christian
KEYWORDS: tradedress

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The Mormon Stories logo next to official Church logos, taken from the lawsuit.

1 posted on 08/25/2026 8:54:36 AM PDT by Cronos
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To: All

The Church claims that the podcast uses branding that will cause some people to believe ‘Mormon Stories’ is associated with or endorsed by the Church, including their previously blue logo.

Notably, the Church announced that it was moving away from the name ‘Mormon’ in 2018 and asked to be referred by its official name as “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”


2 posted on 08/25/2026 8:55:41 AM PDT by Cronos (Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government.)
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To: Cronos

At least the LDS isn’t trying to hide the fact that religions are actually businesses.


3 posted on 08/25/2026 9:08:09 AM PDT by Poison Pill
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To: Cronos

can someone be sued for using the word “Christian”?


4 posted on 08/25/2026 9:12:59 AM PDT by ChronicMA
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To: Poison Pill

Well, The Church of Jesus Christ . . .

Has been around way longer than 200 years.

I think they are infringeing on that.


5 posted on 08/25/2026 9:15:01 AM PDT by Scrambler Bob ( My pronoun is EXIT. Generally full of /S -- Living with Havana Syndrome -infected from Main Stream)
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To: Scrambler Bob

Mormons are like Scientology. They sue people trying to tell the truth about their theology


6 posted on 08/25/2026 9:20:18 AM PDT by Fai Mao
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To: Fai Mao

True that.
Their founder was a criminal and horndog


7 posted on 08/25/2026 9:24:07 AM PDT by aMorePerfectUnion (🦅 MAGADONIAN ⚔️ LIFE)
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sounds like they needed be taxed if they are going to play business games.


8 posted on 08/25/2026 9:38:19 AM PDT by proust (All posts made under this handle are, for the intents and purposes of the author, considered satire.)
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To: Cronos

I still remember when they had advertisements on TV offering a FREE BIBLE for calling a number. The add ended with the words..”The Mormons!”
So I called and got a free bible.
Two weeks later I get another call offering me “another testament of Jesus Christ.” Book of Mormon.
I ask “Is this another gospel?”
The answer was..”YES!”
I then read the person what Galatians 1 said about “another gospel” and the curse.
Their response was...”WHAT’S GALATIANS?”|
Bible readers they are not.


9 posted on 08/25/2026 9:42:47 AM PDT by Ruy Dias de Bivar (REOPEN THE CLOSED MENTAL HOSPITALS! Closed in the 1970s, murders by crazies sky rocketed!)
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To: Cronos

Scientology tier legal harassment.


10 posted on 08/25/2026 9:50:59 AM PDT by Salman (We need to proceed as if the system were completely broken. Because it is. )
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To: Cronos

Scientology tier legal harassment.


11 posted on 08/25/2026 9:51:00 AM PDT by Salman (We need to proceed as if the system were completely broken. Because it is. )
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To: Cronos
Notably, the Church announced that it was moving away from the name ‘Mormon’ in 2018 and asked to be referred by its official name as “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints”

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. That's after they changed the signage on their church buildings to enlarge the name "Jesus Christ", probably to make themselves appear more mainstream Christian:


12 posted on 08/25/2026 9:58:21 AM PDT by fidelis (Ecce Crucem Domini! Fugite partes adversae! Vicit Leo de tribu Juda, Radix David! Alleluia!)
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To: Ruy Dias de Bivar

My wife’s hairdresser was a Mormon until her father left the family and they were basically shunned. She said they studied the Old Testament and the BOM but rarely ventured into the New Testament.


13 posted on 08/25/2026 9:58:36 AM PDT by AppyPappy (They don't call you a Nazi because they think you are one. They do it to justify violence. )
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To: Ruy Dias de Bivar

When there were protests against Adult book stores a woman, who was a Mormon, wanted me to sign her petition and we got to talking.

I quoted 2 Peter 2:19

“They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved”.

She asked me where it was from. I showed her, I think she was kind of amazed. She never heard of it.


14 posted on 08/25/2026 10:19:04 AM PDT by Beowulf9
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To: Cronos

just change the name to “Moron Stories”; problem solved ...


15 posted on 08/25/2026 10:31:09 AM PDT by catnipman ((A Vote For The Lesser Of Two Evils Still Counts As A Vote For Evil))
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To: Fai Mao

“They sue people trying to tell the truth about their theology”

No they aren’t. They are suing them for trademark and copyrighted material. This has nothing to do with their theology. That would be trying to block the first amendment on speech. What they are doing compares to suing the farmer in the next farm because he has cows that put out the same milk as theirs and he sells it.

wy69


16 posted on 08/25/2026 10:59:10 AM PDT by whitney69 (`)
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To: Cronos

Yeah and a Christian church should sue them for confusion they cause by calling themselves christians.


17 posted on 08/25/2026 11:00:32 AM PDT by ThisLittleLightofMine
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To: Cronos

That 2018 change in policy weakens their case. But the defendant may not have the resources to fight a legal battle with the LDS church.


18 posted on 08/25/2026 11:14:14 AM PDT by maro (MAGA!)
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To: Cronos

These geniuses just tripled the amount of traffic to the site. Well done.


19 posted on 08/25/2026 11:30:41 AM PDT by Seruzawa ("The political left is the Garden of Eden of incompetence." -Marx the Smarter (Groucho.))
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