What was filed
The complaint is Document 1, filed October 6, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, Charleston Division. The case is Textron Inc., Textron Innovations Inc., and Textron E-Z-GO LLC v. Legacy EV LLC d/b/a EZ Kruiser, No. 2:26-cv-04487, and it includes a jury demand. It pleads six counts: trademark infringement under 15 U.S.C. § 1114, false designation of origin under 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)(1)(A), false advertising under 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)(1)(B), dilution under 15 U.S.C. § 1125(c), South Carolina common law trademark infringement, and the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-10 et seq. Counsel are Samuel Alexander Long, Jr. and Christina Davidson Trimmer (pro hac vice application forthcoming) of Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP.
What the complaint alleges
The complaint says Textron Innovations Inc. owns four Class 12 registrations it describes as incontestable: E-Z-GO, U.S. Reg. No. 1,299,452; EZGO, Reg. No. 2,706,193; a stylized E-Z-GO design mark, Reg. No. 3,605,315; and E-Z-GO EXPRESS, Reg. No. 4,798,279. It says Textron Innovations licenses those marks exclusively to Textron E-Z-GO LLC, which sells golf cars, low-speed vehicles, utility task vehicles, and personal transportation vehicles under them. It alleges, on information and belief, that Legacy EV LLC is a Mississippi limited liability company formed on February 11, 2025, based in Picayune, Mississippi.
The complaint alleges that the defendant showed golf cars bearing EZ KRUISER at the Golf Carting Expo in North Charleston, South Carolina, on October 1 through 3, 2026, in a booth directly next to E-Z-GO's. It says Textron sales team members heard from dealers, industry members, and consumers at the expo who asked how the defendant was related to E-Z-GO and whether it was a sub-brand of E-Z-GO, and it quotes the statement, "The way they put you next to each other, we assumed you were the same company." It alleges that the defendant's owner and founder told E-Z-GO personnel the defendant selected the name so it would populate in web searches for E-Z-GO products. It also points to a Louisiana dealer listing a "2027 EZ-Kruiser" golf cart for $13,995.00.
The complaint says Textron hand delivered a cease-and-desist letter at the expo on October 2, 2026, and alleges the defendant did not comply and returned to the expo on October 3. The false advertising count rests on what the complaint describes as a statement on the defendant's website that its golf carts can reach speeds up to 27 miles per hour. The complaint says 49 C.F.R. § 571.500(a) limits low-speed vehicles to 25 miles per hour, and it alleges, on information and belief, that the statement is literally false.
The complaint alleges that the E-Z-GO marks are famous under 15 U.S.C. § 1125(c)(2) and that the conduct is willful. The prayer asks for a preliminary and permanent injunction barring the defendant from using EZ, EZ KRUISER, EZ-KRUISER, or any other mark, name, designation, or domain name containing EZ or E-Z, or otherwise confusingly similar to the E-Z-GO marks, for golf cars, low-speed vehicles, utility task vehicles, personal transportation vehicles, parts, accessories, or related services, an order to instruct dealers to stop using the mark and the speed claim, destruction of materials under 15 U.S.C. § 1118, profits, actual damages, enhanced or treble damages and attorneys' fees under 15 U.S.C. § 1117(a), and treble damages and fees under S.C. Code Ann. § 39-5-140.