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# Santa Monica cabbie wins back identity in court
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/santa-monica-cabbie-wins-back-identity-in-court/
- Published: 2001-12-06T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-22T22:29:59.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Crime, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Judge rules that cab names are confusing*

A Santa Monica judge Wednesday intervened in the city’s cab wars, effectively ordering one competitor to change the name of his company.

The ruling came when the judge found the name “Express Cab Co.” was likely to hurt the older “Express Taxi Co.” by siphoning off customers. So pro tem judge Gregory Glynn ordered Kostan Gasparyan to change the company’s name or pay $5,000 in damages in what began as a trademark infringement case in small claims court.

Express Taxi Co. owner Ayman Radwan claimed Gasparyan’s cab company, Express Cab Co. has a name deceptively close to his, and could confuse customers. The two cabbies first appeared in court in October, but an earlier judge postponed the case because he was unfamiliar with deceptive business and trademark law.

When Glynn took up the case he decided it was about trademark infringement. Glynn termed his ruling a “backhanded injunction.” While it’s difficult for a small claims judge to order a company to change its name, Glynn found no difficulty in ordering Gasparyan to change the name of his company within 30 days or pay Radwan $5,000.

“The test is a likelihood of confusion and I can make that determination easily,” he said. “There are a lot of names. There are an infinite number of names out there,” Glynn told Gasparyan through an Armenian interpreter. “If you change the name there is no judgment.”

Gasparyan said he was unsure whether he would change the name or appeal the judge’s decision. He said he would research how much it will cost him to get a new business identity.

Radwan sued for $5,000, the maximum amount in small claims, but said he wanted the name change more than the money.

“I am extremely happy and excited,” Radwan said. “I totally think that justice has been served. I hope for the guy that he has a good business but he has to change the name because it’s mine. I think the judge was extremely fair because he knew that this case is indeed confusing to the public and he knew I was not in it for the money.”

Glynn didn’t require that Radwan prove he lost $5,000 in business due to the name confusion. The only proof Radwan had to show was written testimony from other cabbies who were confused into thinking his operation was Express Cab even though it is really Express Taxi. Even Radwan’s insurance company got it wrong and issued his policy under the name “Express Cab.” And the judge and the two cabbies got confused during testimony on whose paperwork was whose because of the similar names.

Glynn was convinced after only 10 minutes of testimony that Radwan has the right to the name “express” because he had filed it with the city of Santa Monica before Gasparyan did. But he could only grant a stayed money judgment because of the limitations of small claims court.

“The problem is this case doesn’t belong in small claims court because you want an injunction,” he told Radwan, but then ruled in favor of his claim in a way that got around his inability to issue a name change order.

The cab wars began when Express Cab Co. came to Santa Monica this summer. Radwan claimed Gasparyan set up shop in the same city intentionally. While it’s not illegal to compete, trademark law allows protection for a recognizable name used in commerce.

Radwan spent much of the year 2000 researching the market and developing his business plan. He selected the word “express” as a way to create the impression of a distinct service. But when Gasparyan showed up, Radwan became concerned that a bad experience with Gasparyan’s cab service could mean lost business for him due to the confusion.

Gasparyan charges more, at $2.60 a mile to Radwan’s $2.20\. “They don’t speak English and this could be a catastrophe because they charge high rates and if they (customers) have a bad experience at $2.60 a mile they will never, ever call express anything again,” Radwan told the Daily Press last month. “I cannot notice the damages right now. I can feel it though.”

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 6, 2001.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/120601.pdf?ref=smdp.com)