April 14 (Bloomberg) -- Topps Co. sued baseball card maker Upper Deck Co., saying its rival’s 2009 cards infringed the design of Topps’ product from the 1970s.

Topps, which was taken private in 2007, claims in a lawsuit filed today in Manhattan federal court that Upper Deck’s newest cards are using a design from Topps’ 1971, 1975 and 1977 cards.

“Topps recently discovered that Upper Deck intends to sell, and has already begun selling, baseball cards using designs that are identical or almost identical to the designs of the Topps cards,” according to the complaint.

Topps is seeking a court order blocking Upper Deck from using what it says is its design and ordering Upper Deck to withdraw infringing cards. Topps, which also seeks unspecified damages, says its cards from the 1970s still have value in the secondary trading market.

Terry Melia, a spokesman for closely held Upper Deck, which is based in Carlsbad, California, didn’t have an immediate comment.

In October 2007, Topps was acquired for $385 million, or $9.75 a share, by former Walt Disney Co. chief Michael Eisner’s Tornante Co. and Madison Dearborn Partners LLC. Upper Deck had offered to buy Topps for $416 million before scrapping that proposal.

The copyright suit follows another case between Topps, which was founded in 1938, and Upper Deck, which began selling sports trading cards two decades ago, in a federal court in Indiana.

The case is Topps Co. v. Upper Deck Company Inc., 1:09-cv-3780, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

To contact the reporters on this story: David Glovin in federal court in Manhattan at dglovin@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 14, 2009 17:40 EDT