Tax preparation company H&R Block Inc. today filed a lawsuit against Jack Dorsey’s Block Inc., the company previously known as Square Inc., for alleged trademark infringement.

H&R Block claims that its goodwill and brand identity, which it has cultivated over the last 65 years, is under attack by the San Francisco-based tech company. It also claims that Block Inc. competes directly with H&R Block, which also refers to itself simply as “Block,” in several areas of financial services, including tax preparation through its purchase of Credit Karma Tax, now called Cash App Taxes.

The company argues that it has built a valuable brand that has earned and maintained the trust and loyalty of millions of consumers and that Block Inc. appears to be taking a shortcut to capitalize on the well-known Block moniker. H&R Block said this is a clear violation of its trademark rights and threatens to confuse consumers and cause harm.

“Today’s filing is an important effort to prevent consumer confusion and ensure a competitor cannot leverage the reputation and trust we have built over more than six decades,” Jeff Jones, H&R Block president and chief executive officer, said in a statement. “Protecting and defending our brand is crucial.”

The Wall Street Journal reported that H&R Block owns U.S. trademark registrations for “H&R Block,” “Blockworks,” “Block Advisors” and other related names. It does not have a trademark for “Block” but believes its established use of the name provides certain trademark rights.

Block has yet to respond publicly to the lawsuit.

The change of name from Square to Block was announced by CEO Dorsey on Dec. 1, days after he stepped down as CEO of Twitter Inc. The decision to change Square’s name, a move that echoed Facebook’s decision to change its name to Meta Platforms Inc., was said to reflect Square’s shift from a payments company into a broader company with multiple businesses.

Block’s business includes not only the Square payments service but also Cash App, Tidal — the music streaming service the company acquired for $297 million in March — and a financial services division focused on bitcoin called TBD54566975.

“We built the Square brand for our Seller business, which is where it belongs,” Dorsey said at the time of the announcement. “Block is a new name, but our purpose of economic empowerment remains the same. No matter how we grow or change, we will continue to build tools to help increase access to the economy.”

Photo: Marco Verch/Flickr