RALEIGH, N.C. (CN) - A North Carolina gun store is taking on firearms manufacturer Q, LLC after a parody product line triggered a cease and desist. 

Bad Attitude Department, LLC, which designs and sells firearm parts in Lenoir, North Carolina, filed suit Friday after the New Hampshire company asked it to stop selling a line of "Q T Cat" - a play on 'cutie cat' -  AR-15 lower receiver products. 

"The cat may look cute, but don't pet, it bites," the product descriptions say. The receivers have cat graphics derived from Q's logo, Bad Attitude said, and are designed "to comment upon and criticize the founder of Q." Near the cat, engraved in the metal, reads: "NOT FRIENDLY DO NOT PET."

Bad Attitude said Q sent it a cease and desist letter in May claiming the parody products infringe its registered trademark and misappropriate its trade dress. The letter demanded the North Carolina gun shop stop selling and advertising the products and remove related listings and social media posts by June 1 or face legal action. Q has not sued the shop.

Bad Attitude sued only the company, but noted that Q founder Kevin Brittingham - though not named as a defendant - has cultivated a public persona within the firearms industry. By doing so, the shop argues, Brittingham "subjected himself and Q to public commentary and criticism."

Bad Attitude said Brittingham has faced criticism from within the firearms community and once told a customer to "stfu" in response to an order inquiry.

The complaint says the "not friendly do not pet" engraving on the receiver "directly references Q's and its founder's widely documented abrasive personality and industry conduct." It also argues the parody products substantially alter Q's logo, that the "cutie cat" language is at odds with Q's "serious and masculine" branding and that the items are clearly labeled as parody products.

"The feline graphic uses Q's mark as its subject, the way a caricature uses a public figure's likeness," Bad Attitude wrote. "Its purpose is to ridicule Q's founder's public conduct and persona. That reference is artistically necessary. The commentary has no meaning without an allusion to its target." 

In the cease and desist, attached as an exhibit to the lawsuit, Q's Chief Legal Officer Sean R. List said Bad Attitude had chosen to "brazenly infringe upon and misappropriate" Q's trademark with the products.  The product "crudely includes other markings and aesthetic qualities meant to mimic" Q's products, List wrote.

"The public can easily ascertain your attempt at connecting your products to Q, which will likely continue to cause confusion in the marketplace," List said in the notice.   

Neither Q nor List replied to requests for comment made outside of normal business hours. 

Bad Attitude claimed the cease and desist was intended to silence the company.  

"No reasonable consumer familiar with Q's products could mistake the parody products for Q products," Bad Attitude wrote. "No such consumer would believe Q sponsored or endorsed the parody products. The kitty-cat graphic simultaneously references and distinguishes itself from Q's mark. That simultaneous reference and distinction is the defining feature of effective parody," the company added.

Bad Attitude asked the court to declare that it did not infringe Q's trademarks, that Q's mark is not famous, that the company suffered no reputational harm from the parody and that the products do not constitute unfair competition and are protected by the First Amendment.

The shop said parody products are a core part of its business. It also sells "Shit Show" patches parodying "SHOT Show," the annual shooting, hunting and outdoor trade show. According to its website, the sold-out "Q T Cat" products are expected to be restocked.

Q, which sells firearms and silencers, also custom-builds firearms and hosts a podcast called "Live Q or Die." Brittingham also founded the firearm company Advanced Armament Corporation. 

Source: Courthouse News Service