No. 22-2075 ___________________________

H&R Block, Inc.; HRB Innovations, Inc.

Plaintiffs - Appellees

v.

Block, Inc.

Defendant - Appellant ____________

Appeal from United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri - Kansas City ____________

Submitted: September 21, 2022 Filed: January 24, 2023 ____________ Before GRUENDER, MELLOY, and ERICKSON, Circuit Judges. ____________ ERICKSON, Circuit Judge.

Block, Inc. appeals from an order granting in part H&R Block, Inc. and HRB Innovations, Inc.’s (collectively, “H&R Block”) motion for a preliminary injunction. The district court enjoined Block, Inc. from engaging in the following conduct:

1. from using “Block, Inc.,” or “Block,” or a close variant, such as “Blocks,” in connection with or in close proximity to Cash App Taxes

-1- or the green square Cash App Taxes logo. This means that Defendant cannot operate Cash App Taxes as a feature of Cash App or be linked to Cash App through a separate application so long as Cash App also refers to Block, Inc. It also means that Cash App Taxes cannot be owned by a legal entity with the word “Block” in it.

2. from publicly communicating though advertising, press releases, social media, on its websites, or other public tools, that it is associated with Cash App Taxes or any platform or internet function that contains or embeds Cash App Taxes or other brands or products associated with taxes or tax services.

H&R Block claims that use of “Block” and a green square logo in connection with tax services: (1) is likely to cause confusion because H&R Block and Block, Inc. both offer overlapping services, including tax preparation and filing, other related financial services, and charitable services; (2) has confused consumers, the media, and investors; and (3) will cause irreparable harm, as it will undermine H&R Block’s ability to control its public image and perception and lead consumers to incorrectly believe Block, Inc’s tax service is connected to H&R Block or one of the “building blocks” in the Block, Inc. family of brands. For the reasons stated below, we reverse and vacate the preliminary injunction. I. BACKGROUND

H&R Block was founded in 1955 as a bookkeeping business. It now specializes in income tax preparation and other tax and financial services. Having invested billions of dollars on national advertising campaigns, H&R Block has developed a broad market presence, both in person and online. H&R Block’s financial services include: pre-paid debit cards, lines of credit, loans, access to credit scores, money management, payment processing, and mobile banking platforms, such MyBlock. Under its “Block Advisors” brand, H&R Block offers tax, financial, accounting, bookkeeping, and payroll services to small businesses. H&R Block also operates a community impact program called “Make Every Block Better.” The company asserts that it is known today as not only “H&R Block” but also “Block.”

-2- As part of its branding, H&R Block owns several federal trademark registrations and uses a green square logo in connection with its products and services.

Square, Inc., founded in 2009, began with a product called “Square” that was a payment card reader and point-of-sale software, which allowed businesses and individual sellers to accept customer payments. Over time, Square, Inc. acquired or developed other businesses. One