Surfers and skaters across San Diego and beyond have a name for the young and inexperienced among them: grommets.<\/p>\n
The term, along with its sidekicks \u201cgrom\u201d and \u201cgremmie,\u201d dates back several generations \u2014 a nod to the teenagers who perennially emerge in the world of extreme sports and prove they\u2019re still be learning the crafts and culture.<\/p>\n
To Mark-Robert Bluemel, a San Diego attorney who grew up in the surfing community, grommets are earnest and helpful, loyal and wholesome.<\/p>\n
When not practicing law, Bluemel wrote a series of books called \u201cThe Grommets.\u201d The books center on three boys named Buzz, Oz and Jimbo whose surf adventures and mysteries lead to teachable moments and practical life lessons.<\/p>\n
Bluemel trademarked his series title\u00a0in 2008, following the publication a year earlier of his first book, \u201cThe Grommets: The Secret of Turtle Cave.\u201d<\/p>\n
He produced a follow-up book, \u201cThe Grommets: Big Island Justice,\u201d in 2013 and he expects to publish the third installment, \u201cThe Grommets: Toxic Tides,\u201d in the next several months.<\/p>\n
But the San Diego surfer and lawyer recently discovered that last year a major publisher began distributing a graphic-novel series by Richard Remender and others with nearly the same name.<\/p>\n
The series from Image Comics, called simply \u201cGrommets,\u201d features two best friends and outcasts who are far different from Bluemel\u2019s heroes. Now he\u2019s embroiled in a legal dispute over the term that spans two federal courts.<\/p>\n
\u201cRather than promoting the values of courage, respect and integrity central to The Grommets stories, the infringing work distorts those elements into a coarse and profane parody that glorifies violence, drug use and sexual misconduct,\u201d Bluemel\u2019s October lawsuit says.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe result is a work that misappropriates (the) plaintiff\u2019s creative framework while stripping it of its positive moral foundation,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Both series are marketed on online platforms like Amazon and Barnes & Noble, generating a conflict between the two brands \u2014 and, according to Bluemel, a trademark infringement.<\/p>\n
![\"Mark-Robert](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SUT-L-GROMMETS-LAWSUITS-005.jpg\")
Mark-Robert Bluemel, a lawyer and a surfer, has written a series of young adult books based on a trio of kids he calls the Grommets, shown here on Dec. 21, 2025, in San Diego. Bluemel, who copyrighted his creation in 2008, is involved in a legal battle with another publisher using the same name. (K.C. Alfred \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n
The San Diego lawyer characterizes the dispute as a David-versus-Goliath scrum, pitting himself against the third-largest comics publisher in the world.<\/p>\n
Lawyers for Image Comics and other defendants in the San Diego federal court case did not respond to requests for comment about the dispute. But they went on the offensive in July, suing Bluemel in Washington state.<\/p>\n
The company is asking a judge in western Washington to declare that it did not infringe on Bluemel\u2019s trademark and to direct the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to cancel its registration of \u201cThe Grommets.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBluemel does not own any valid and enforceable trademark rights in his asserted mark giving him exclusive right to use the generic word \u2018Grommets,\u2019\u201d the lawyers wrote in their Washington state case.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe wording is generic and\/or so highly descriptive for the covered goods, and thus not protectible,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n
Bluemel responded by filing his own lawsuit, naming not only Image and Remender but also co-creators Brian Posehn, Brett Parson and Moreno Dinishio.<\/p>\n
The Image Comics series was introduced in 2024. But Bluemel did not learn about the graphic novels until earlier this year, when they were included in a showcase hosted by the publisher at Comic-Con in San Diego.<\/p>\n
The \u201cplaintiff promptly acted upon discovering the infringement, sending notice violation of plaintiff\u2019s rights the The Grommets trademark and a cease-and-desist (letter) in July 2025,\u201d Bluemel wrote in his complaint.<\/p>\n
His notice, dated July 11, advised Image Comics of the alleged trademark violation and demanded it stop marketing its own \u201cGrommets\u201d novels, destroy the remaining inventory and provide an accounting of its profits.<\/p>\n
Bluemel also said he was willing to negotiate a licensing deal \u201cunder appropriate terms and conditions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead, Image Comics filed its federal lawsuit in Washington later that month, arguing Bluemel\u2019s trademark was invalid and asking a judge to declare it void.<\/p>\n
\u201cA \u2018grommet\u2019 is a commonly used term for a young up-and-coming skater or surfer,\u201d the lawsuit said. \u201cSince the 1960s, it has been used to describe the next generation of kids who, with youthful exuberance, love the sport but want to put their own spin on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Bluemel finds the alleged infringement particularly damaging because the Image Comics books contain graphic depictions of profanity, violence, drug use and other content he says is inconsistent with the wholesome nature of his books.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis juxtaposition tarnishes my mark and risks misleading parents, educators, readers and retailers into believing that I am associated with or endorse Image Comics\u2019 content,\u201d he said by email.<\/p>\n
Bluemel also said the decision by Image Comics to file their claim in Washington state was a calculated legal maneuver, not a legitimate choice of courts.<\/p>\n
\u201cNeither I nor the alleged infringing conduct has any meaningful connection to Washington state,\u201d he said. \u201cI do not live there, I do not conduct business there and I have never purposefully directed activities toward Washington residents.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to court records, that lawsuit is awaiting a ruling from the Washington judge on Bluemel\u2019s request that it be dismissed.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, records in San Diego federal court show that Image Comics and the other defendants filed a motion earlier this month challenging the legal service of the lawsuit. If granted, the local case would need to start anew.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Surfers and skaters across San Diego and beyond have a name for the young and inexperienced among them:…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":109475,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[1312,181,23,100,74,76,75,1696],"class_list":{"0":"post-109474","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-courts","9":"tag-latest-headlines","10":"tag-local-news","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-san-diego","13":"tag-san-diego-headlines","14":"tag-san-diego-news","15":"tag-top-stories-sdut"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=109474"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109474\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/109475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=109474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=109474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=109474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}