How To Select a Strong Trademark
In Karneolis LTD v. EU Intellectual Property Office and Match Group LLC,[1] the EU General Court ruled in favour of Match Group LLC, the dating app conglomerate that owns and operates, among others, Tinder, Hinge, and...more
In this episode of The Upper Brand, Kristine Young and Rich Assmus discuss the recent Federal Circuit case regarding the doctrine of foreign equivalents in trademark law. They explore the concepts of descriptiveness and...more
The Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Heritage Alliance v. American Policy Roundtable, Case No. 24-1155 (Fed. Cir. Apr. 9, 2025), provides a salient reminder to brand owners seeking to build value in descriptive trademarks...more
Suppose you want to register a trademark that identifies a source of goods/services for your business. What if the trademark describes an ingredient, quality, feature, function, characteristic, or purpose of your...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a senior party mark but found that the district court committed clear error in finding that a similar junior party mark was valid. The Fifth Circuit also found that the...more
Joining a series of precedential decisions about descriptiveness, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board recently affirmed a refusal to register Sheet Pile, LLC’s (“Applicant”) mark ZPILE on the Principal Register, on the...more
Welcome to the March 2024 issue of Sterne Kessler’s MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss the IPR Center’s efforts to stop global IP theft and address counterfeiting on both home and foreign turf; a recent TTAB...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed a district court’s grant of summary judgement to a luxury-watchmaker defendant, holding that its use of a registered and incontestable trademarked term was fair use...more
There once was a company named Zotz, Which created toys for tots, Let’s use “Robotoy,” Zotz declares, File at once, Lawyer Zares, Months later, Zotz is dejected, Too descriptive, trademark rejected. First published in...more
Rupp v. Courier-Journal, Inc. involves a dispute between the makers of DERBY-PIE®—a trademarked chocolate-nut pie—and a local newspaper that published two articles about other businesses creating other chocolate-nut desserts....more
It is an epic trademark dispute with a lot of bling. Tiffany & Co. vs. Costco. The famed jeweler from the east vs. the titan of warehouse discounts from the west. A jury found that Costco was liable to Tiffany & Co. to the...more
In 2016, SportFuel sued PepsiCo for using their registered trademark “SPORTFUEL” in a slogan used to advertise Gatorade products. SportFuel is a personalized nutrition consulting firm in Chicago. ...more
Since 2013, the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has tried to prohibit the Swabian whisky producer Waldhornbrennerei, which is based in Berglen near Stuttgart, from using the trade mark “Glen Buchenbach”. ...more
According to the Federal Circuit, the skinny on the term “Thins” is that it may be generic for thinly cut snack crackers. Real Foods Pty Ltd. V. Frito-Lay North America, Inc., (October 4, 2018 Fed. Cir.)....more
Royal Crown Co., Inc. v. The Coca-Cola Co., 2018 WL 3040163 (Fed. Cir. June 20, 2018) - In late June, the Federal Circuit issued an opinion in the year-long litigation between Royal Crown Co., Inc. (“RC”) and The...more
Many online businesses prefer to use domain names that communicate as clearly and concisely as possible the types of goods and services offered on their websites. That may be good marketing strategy. But as a recent decision...more
Addressing when a descriptive mark acquires a secondary meaning, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court, determining that neither party is entitled to a federal registration of the...more
Addressing the question of when a professional name can be protected as a trademark, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit found that the plaintiff doctor’s name had not acquired that distinction. Tartell, M.D....more