A Black-owned boxing company is going toe-to-toe with Duke University, accusing the school of using its trademarked slogan, “Put Up Your Dukes,” without permission or compensation.
Source: Sarah Stier / Getty
KDukesBoxing Inc., a boxing equipment company founded by Marine Corps veteran Kevin Dukes, filed a lawsuit against the university on May 29, alleging trademark infringement and counterfeiting.
As first reported by The Duke Chronicle, the company claims Duke has used the phrase on everything from stadium billboards and social media posts to T-shirts sold through its university stores.
Kevin Dukes Says His Boxing Brand Established Rights To The Slogan Years Before Duke University’s Campaign
Founded in New York in 2016, BOSSIP can confirm that KDukesBoxing describes itself as a pioneering Black-owned boxing gloves and equipment company. Its founder, Kevin Dukes, has built the brand around empowerment, diversity, and inclusivity in boxing, while also championing causes including autism acceptance and cancer awareness.
Central to that identity is the phrase “Put Up Your Dukes,” a familiar boxing expression that KDukesBoxing says serves as a play on the founder’s last name.
The company maintains that it has used the slogan for more than nine years and holds two federal trademarks associated with it.
The Chronicle reports that one trademark covers a distinctive logo featuring two boxing gloves positioned in an uppercut stance above the words “Put Up Your Dukes.” The second protects the phrase itself as a standard-character wordmark, which the company applied to register in 2017 and received registration for in 2019.
The Chronicle reports that the lawsuit alleges that Duke University was expressly notified of KDukesBoxing’s trademark rights as early as October 2017, but continued using the slogan in subsequent marketing efforts.
The university’s disputed promotional campaign dates to August 2024, when Duke Athletics introduced its Bull City logo as part of an initiative celebrating its connection to Durham, North Carolina.
Although the Bull City logo does not contain the phrase “Put Up Your Dukes,” the university incorporated the slogan into accompanying promotional materials.
The phrase subsequently appeared on billboards throughout Durham, social media posts, signage inside Wallace Wade Stadium, and T-shirts sold through Duke University Stores, according to The Chronicle.
KDukesBoxing alleges that the university’s use of the slogan is confusingly similar to its own branding and could lead consumers to incorrectly associate the company’s products with Duke University.
KDukesBoxing has requested a jury trial, monetary damages tied to profits allegedly earned through the disputed branding, and a permanent injunction preventing Duke University from continuing to use the phrase.
The company is also asking the court to order the destruction of merchandise and other goods in Duke’s possession bearing the disputed slogan.
According to the complaint, continued use of the phrase “threatens KDukesBoxing’s business reputation, customer relationships, and ability to benefit commercially from its own branding.”
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