The Mormon Stories lawsuit is a trademark and copyright case filed on April 17, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah, in which The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its intellectual property arm, Intellectual Reserve Inc., accuse podcast host John Dehlin and the Open Stories Foundation of using the church’s protected name, imagery, and design elements without permission.1CourtListener. Intellectual Reserve Inc v. Open Stories Foundation The case, numbered 2:26-cv-00321 and assigned to Judge Robert James Shelby, is the most public confrontation to date between the church’s brand-enforcement program and a former member whose podcast has become a leading platform for people questioning or leaving the faith.
What the Church Is Claiming
The complaint carries two core claims. On trademark, the church argues that the podcast’s use of the word “Mormon” together with visual elements resembling official church branding creates a likelihood that the public will think the show is affiliated with the church. The specific elements cited include depictions of the Christus statue used in the church’s official symbol, a “light-rays” design used to highlight text, and a color scheme and font the church says have become associated with its materials.2Deseret News. Church of Jesus Christ Files Trademark Complaint Against Podcaster for Alleged Imitation of Brands3The Salt Lake Tribune. LDS Church Sues Mormon Stories On copyright, the church says Dehlin used its photographs without permission on the podcast website and in video thumbnails.
The church is asking the court for a permanent injunction that would bar the defendants from using names, marks, or designs it considers “confusingly similar” to its branding, and from reproducing, distributing, or displaying its copyrighted works.2Deseret News. Church of Jesus Christ Files Trademark Complaint Against Podcaster for Alleged Imitation of Brands
How the Dispute Reached Court
The church did not open with a lawsuit. Its intellectual property manager first contacted Dehlin in November 2025 about the branding concerns.4Church Newsroom. Getting It Right: Clarifying Trademark Branding Concerns The two sides spent roughly five months trying to work it out, including a formal mediation from February to March 2026. Mediation ended without a full agreement.2Deseret News. Church of Jesus Christ Files Trademark Complaint Against Podcaster for Alleged Imitation of Brands
Dehlin made several changes along the way. He shifted the podcast’s logo from blue to orange after the church flagged the earlier design as too close to its own, removed three years’ worth of copyrighted church photographs from website homepages and video thumbnails, and added a disclaimer to the podcast’s Spotify, Apple, and YouTube descriptions stating the show is not affiliated with the church.2Deseret News. Church of Jesus Christ Files Trademark Complaint Against Podcaster for Alleged Imitation of Brands5ABC4 News. LDS Church Sues Mormon Stories Podcast
The sticking point was prominence. The church wanted the disclaimer to be a primary, highly visible element of the podcast’s branding. Dehlin refused, telling reporters, “The church wanted us to make the disclaimer more prominent so it was essentially the primary thing anyone sees in our branding, which we believe is unreasonable. We don’t want our primary message to be about what we are not.”2Deseret News. Church of Jesus Christ Files Trademark Complaint Against Podcaster for Alleged Imitation of Brands He also declined to rename the podcast or stop using the word “Mormon” in future projects.6LGBTQ Nation. He Helped LGBTQ Mormons Tell Their Stories, Now the Church Is Suing Him but He’s Fighting Back
Dehlin’s Defense
Dehlin denies that anyone is genuinely confused by the podcast’s branding. “Any reasonable person can clearly see that his podcast isn’t affiliated with the church,” he said on Radio West.7RadioWest / KUER. Why the LDS Church Is Suing Mormon Stories Host John Dehlin He says he has been “cooperative at every turn” and characterizes the suit as overreach.5ABC4 News. LDS Church Sues Mormon Stories Podcast
A detail that could cut against the church’s confusion theory: listeners cited within the church’s own filings said they realized after a single episode that the podcast is critical of the church.8Salon. Mormons Will Regret Suing an Ex-Member Harvard Law School professor Rebecca Tushnet has said publicly that the podcast’s use of the word “Mormon” and of images of church leaders in thumbnails likely qualifies as fair use because those elements “truthfully describe the contents of the show.” Dehlin has set up a legal defense fund to pay for the fight.6LGBTQ Nation. He Helped LGBTQ Mormons Tell Their Stories, Now the Church Is Suing Him but He’s Fighting Back
Why the Church Guards the Word “Mormon”
The lawsuit fits inside a much longer effort by the church to control how the word “Mormon” is used. The church holds federal trademark registrations for Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Book of Mormon, Mormon.org, Mormon Channel, and Mormon Messages, among others.9By Common Consent. Trademark Mormon
In 2018, President Russell M. Nelson directed members and the media to stop using the nickname “Mormon” altogether, calling it a “major victory for Satan” when the Savior’s name is omitted from the church’s title.10The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Correct Name of the Church The church has not given up its trademark registrations, though. Abandoning them would open the word to unrestricted use by others. In its newsroom statement on the lawsuit, the church said it reviews “hundreds of potential trademark issues each year,” applies the same standards to critics and supportive creators, and resolves most matters privately. It also framed the dispute as being about protected names, images, and design elements rather than “the podcast’s viewpoint.”4Church Newsroom. Getting It Right: Clarifying Trademark Branding Concerns
Reporting indicates the church has pressured at least three other podcasts to drop “Mormon” from their branding, though the names have not been made public.3The Salt Lake Tribune. LDS Church Sues Mormon Stories11The Salt Lake Tribune. LDS Church Pressures Mormon Podcasts
Who Dehlin and Mormon Stories Are
John Dehlin launched Mormon Stories around 2005 as a space for church members to discuss questions about Mormon history, doctrine, and culture.12NPR. Mormon Stories Podcast Founder Contemplates Excommunication13Mormon Stories. The Excommunication of John Dehlin: My Bishop and Stake President Interviews
The podcast operates under the Open Stories Foundation, a Salt Lake City nonprofit whose stated mission is to “promote understanding, healing, growth, and community for people experiencing or impacted by religious transition.” Dehlin serves as executive director, and the foundation runs additional podcasts, workshops, and retreats for people navigating faith crises.14ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Open Stories Foundation Full Filing15GuideStar. Open Stories Foundation Profile
Where the Case Stands
As of mid-2026, the litigation is still in its opening phase. Summonses were returned as executed on both Dehlin and the Open Stories Foundation in late April 2026, and a notice of the availability of a judicial settlement conference was issued in May, with no public indication that either side has accepted. No substantive rulings, dispositive motions, or trial scheduling orders have appeared on the docket.1CourtListener. Intellectual Reserve Inc v. Open Stories Foundation