Abercrombie & Fitch Claim The Situation Can't Take A Joke?

The war between Sitch and A&F began back in August -- when A&F publicly offered to pay The Situation NOT to wear its clothing. A month later, Sitch sued the company, claiming it ripped off his "GTL" and "Situation" trademarks on a line of guido-mocking t-shirts.

But now, A&F is trying to put an end to the back-and-forth -- claiming Sitch had no right to sue them in the first place ... because he doesn't technically own the trademarks in question ... he only applied for them.

What's more -- A&F claims Situation's application for "Gym Tan Laundry" has actually been suspended ... because MTV already owns "Gym Tanning Laundry," and the US Patent & Trademark Office thinks they're too similar.

But trademarks aside -- A&F insists its shirts are still protected under a law that allows parody as part of free speech ... in other words, the shirts were obviously a harmless joke ... albeit at the Situation's expense.