A lawsuit is pitting two Florida Realtor associations against one another.

According to a piece by Kevin Gale of the South Florida Business Journal, the Realtor Association of Greater Fort Lauderdale (RAGFL) has filed a lawsuit against the Miami Association of Realtors (MAR), one of – if not the – largest real estate associations in the U.S., alleging that MAR engaged in deceptive and inaccurate advertising to lure Fort Lauderdale members to its ranks.

Operating with newspaper ads, emails, postcards and social media strategies, Gale reports that MAR would include several selling points in its advertisements, including the membership fees it charges. The RAGFL, though, takes exception to some of those points.

“Through its false and deceptive advertising and other contact, MAR has brazenly sought to drive and has driven members away from RAGFL and diverted new members from joining RAGFL, thereby causing damages to RAGFL,” reads the complaint, which alleges violations of the Lanham Act.

Teresa King Kinney, the CEO of MAR, was quoted in Gale’s piece strongly denying any wrongdoing by MAR – and even bemoaning the nature of RAGFL’s lawsuit.

“We strongly deny the allegations and vigorously defend the lawsuit,” Kinney said. “We’re always accurate, professional and ethical in all of our business practices, and our advertising and promotion is also accurate and professional.”

“It’s disappointing that a professional organization like Fort Lauderdale has taken this action, which will be expensive and only serve to divert resources away from members,” she said.

Kinney also said, according to Gale, that the lawsuit appears to be a reaction to MAR’s competitive nature, and the fact that they offer more services than the RAGFL at a lower cost. And Gale notes that MAR has only been expanding. In August 2010, MAR merged with the Realtor Association of Greater Miami, and shortly after that merged with the Northwest Dade Association of Realtors, bringing its membership to an estimated 25,600 members, according to Kinney.