News & Analysis as of

United States Patent and Trademark Office Trademark Application Trademark Trial and Appeal Board

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce that serves a fundamental role in the U.S. intellectual property system by issuing patents and registering trademarks.... more +
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce that serves a fundamental role in the U.S. intellectual property system by issuing patents and registering trademarks.    less -
Troutman Pepper Locke

I Found An “I-Dentical” (or Similar) Trademark! What Now?

Troutman Pepper Locke on

“I-dentical.” With a clap for emphasis and a wave of two hands, this phrase became one of the more memorable quotes from a trial. Although, in this case, it was a trial made for Hollywood, where Joe Pesci, a New York...more

Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery LLP

The Federal Circuit takes on Kisses, Sunlight, and Soft Drinks

An application for a US trademark may be rejected if it is likely, when used on or in connection with the goods of the applicant, to cause confusion with another registered mark. On July 23, in Sunkist Growers, Inc. v....more

Farella Braun + Martel LLP

Trademark Applications Filed on an Intent-To-Use Basis Can Be Vulnerable To Challenge

In filing to register a trademark on an “intent-to-use” basis, the applicant must verify that it has a good faith “bona fide intention to use the mark in commerce.” 15 U.S.C. § 1051(b). Assuming there is nothing on the face...more

Fish & Richardson

No Space at the Trademark Office for US SPACE FORCE

Fish & Richardson on

In a rare precedential decision involving Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently upheld a denial by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of applications filed for US...more

McDermott Will & Schulte

No Green Light to Register Color Mark for Medical Gloves

Addressing for the first time the test for determining whether a color mark is generic, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit adopted the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board’s Milwaukee test as the appropriate standard,...more

ArentFox Schiff

It’s Not Easy Being Green (If You Are a Color Trademark for Medical Gloves)

ArentFox Schiff on

In refusing registration of the color green for “chloroprene medical examination gloves,” the Federal Circuit adopted — for the first time — a legal test for genericness of color marks. The decision underscores the high...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Compassion in Registration: A Lesson in Filing Narrow Trademark Applications

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

Identical trademarks can coexist, as the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board once again emphasized when it overturned the refusal of a COMPASSION IN ACTION mark. ...more

Fish & Richardson

Trademark Office Error Saves One Application From Drowning, But Not Its Shipmate

Fish & Richardson on

In a rare case involving an admitted error by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, on February 20, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld the denial of Agadia Systems Inc.’s application for...more

Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP

Trademark Practice Considerations Following the USPTO 2025 Fee Increases

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) could see fewer trademark applications filed in numerous Classes with lengthy descriptions of goods and services as a result of an increase in trademark fees and new surcharges...more

Holland & Knight LLP

COGNAC, Hip Hop and Fame: A Trademark Showdown with a Twist

Holland & Knight LLP on

You might be wondering what cognac, hip-hop and fame have in common. The answer, at least in a recent opinion by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, is certification trademarks. We have written in the past...more

Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP

Fee Increases for Trademark Applications and Maintenance Effective January 18, 2025

The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) has finalized new fees for trademark applications and renewals. These fee increases vary by type of submission, but these changes may impact strategic considerations for trademark...more

Kohrman Jackson & Krantz LLP

When Are Pending Trademark Applications Subject to Court Review?

Generally, third parties who believe they may be harmed by a trademark registration can challenge a USPTO trademark application through the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. However, do third parties have another avenue in...more

Haug Partners LLP

TTAB Decision Highlights The Importance of Accurately Describing Goods and Services In Trademark Applications

Haug Partners LLP on

Recently, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (the “TTAB”) affirmed the decision to cancel Registration Nos. 5,376,467 and 5,376,466, for the marks SMARTLOCK and SMARTLOCK with design (the “Smartlock Marks”), in the name of...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Marvel and DC Lose “Super Hero” Trademark Registration

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has canceled long-standing trademark registrations for “Super Hero” and “Super Heroes,” which had been previously jointly owned by Marvel and DC Comics....more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

A Very Demure and Very Mindful Look at What Celebrities Can Teach Us About Trademarks

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

What do a social media content creator and reality television stars have in common? Apart from more followers than I’ll ever have, significant issues regarding their trademarks. Jools Lebron, a content creator, was...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Reefer Madness – TTAB Dismisses Opposition Because Cannabis Company Lacked Bona Fide Intent To Use Its Mark

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

As the prospect of federal rescheduling of cannabis looms, some in the industry are seemingly attempting to preserve their spot in line at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A recent Trademark Trial and Appeal...more

Weintraub Tobin

(Podcast) The Briefing: Thirsty for Clarity – Brand Confusion In The Beverage Category

Weintraub Tobin on

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board often consider wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages related when determining the likelihood of confusion despite there being no per se rule on the matter. Scott Hervey and Jamie...more

Weintraub Tobin

The Briefing: Thirsty for Clarity – Brand Confusion In The Beverage Category

Weintraub Tobin on

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board often consider wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages related when determining the likelihood of confusion despite there being no per se rule on the matter. Scott Hervey and Jamie...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

Trademark Insights: What the First Precedential TTAB Expungement Decision Means for You

Womble Bond Dickinson on

As a trademark applicant, encountering a prior registration that obstructs your path to registration is never a pleasant experience (nor for your attorneys who have to inform you about it). The frustration only intensifies...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® – June 2024: Home Is Where the Domicile Address Requirement Is

In 2019, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) introduced Trademark Rule 2.189 (37 CFR § 2.189) as part of its larger efforts to combat fraudulent filings and unauthorized practices. Under the rule, all...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

The Ninth Circuit Addresses Judicial Power over Trademark Applications and the Lawful Use of Trademarks on Cannabis (I Mean,...

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

The Ninth Circuit issued two opinions in BBK Tobacco & Foods LLP v. Central Coast Agriculture, Inc. finding judicial power over pending trademark applications and an exception shielding trademark registrations for marks used...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

USPTO Provides Guidance on Using AI-Based Tools in Filing and Preparing Patent and Trademark Applications

On April 11, 2024, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO or Office) published new guidance on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) based tools in connection with preparing and prosecuting patent and...more

Butler Snow LLP

New Utah NHL Team Takes Shot-Pass With Nine Intent-to-Use Trademark Applications

Butler Snow LLP on

Though the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs are in full swing, a lot of off-ice activity is happening as a result of the sale of the Arizona Coyotes to Utah Jazz owners Ryan and Ashley Smith’s Smith Entertainment Group. Most hockey...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® – April 2024: Trademarks are for Parents, Not Children

Children are all too familiar with parents telling them that everything they own is actually mom and dads. And as frustrating as this is to hear as a child, a recent opinion from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s...more

Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® – April 2024

Welcome to the April 2024 issue of Sterne Kessler’s MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss why it’s important for businesses to think critically about who they are listing as their trademark owners, how the TTAB...more

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