At 11th Hour, Seahawks Move ‘12th Man’ Legal Fight

The Seattle Seahawks ran an end-around on Texas A&M;, filing notice Thursday to remove the dispute over the “12th Man” slogan from an Aggie hometown court.

In a three-page “Notice of Removal” filed about two hours before a scheduled hearing in a Brazos County court just a few miles from the A&M; campus, the Super Bowl-bound Seahawks had the case transferred to federal court in Houston, about 100 miles away.

Because Texas A&M; is alleging a violation of its federally registered trademark by the Seahawks, a federal court has jurisdiction in the case, according to documents filed by J. Michael Bell, a Houston lawyer.

The name, a “revered” tradition, Texas A&M; said, refers to the team’s fans as they root for the 11 players on the field and dates to 1922.

“It brings everything here to a screeching halt unless the federal court decides to remand it,” state District Judge J.D. Langley said.

Langley said the maneuver was fairly common for a case involving entities from different regions. U.S. District Judge Ewing Werlein set a pretrial and scheduling conference for June 16.