CONCORD – A New Hampshire paving company has accused a competitor of “cybersquatting” and trademark infringement.

Black Dawg Sealcoat owner Jack Child filed a lawsuit Monday in U.S. District Court, claiming Ameriseal LLC and its owner, Andrew Wright, of 11 Four Seasons Drive, Merrimack, has misappropriated Black Dawg’s name.

Childs said he started Bedford-based Black Dawg in 2005 in response to the bad reputation surrounding the industry, in large part due to shady dealings by some local paving companies. The company has since expanded through franchising throughout southern New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut and upstate New York.

Ameriseal is also a long-standing and nationally franchised business. Andrew and Thomas Wright own the Merrimack-based Ameriseal LLC in New Hampshire, according to public records.

Black Dawg claims that the Wrights have established domain names using the “Black Dawg” name – such as nhblackdawg.com, and blackdawgsealcoat.net – presumably to pilfer some of the company’s potential customers.

The suit claims that the Wrights refused to disown the domains when asked, responding that Black Dawg should have bought them itself. Childs also claims the Wrights posted false and disparaging reviews of Black Dawg online, and Ameriseal falsely claimed to have completed jobs that were done by other companies, including Black Dawg.

Andrew Wolfe can be reached at 759-2808 or awolfe@nashuatelegraph.com.