Part 2: WHAT -
Last month, we reviewed where the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) derives its trademark rights—if you missed last month’s article, catch up here: June 2024 Article. This month, we are exploring...more
Join Sterne Kessler’s Global Trademark & Brand Protection team for our mid-year review webinar, when we will take a closer look at the latest developments in trademark law. From recent court decisions to industry-trends, our...more
7/16/2024
/ Acquired Distinctiveness ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
False Association ,
First Amendment ,
Functionality ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
Right of Publicity ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
Webinars
As any good trademark practitioner knows, a “naked” consent agreement is one in which one party provides consent to the registration of another party’s mark without an explanation of why confusion is unlikely, or what the...more
Thank you for reading the December 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss the USPTO's new guidance on "clothed" consent agreements, three ways to protect your identify and avoid...more
12/22/2023
/ Consent Agreements ,
Goods or Services ,
IP Assignment Agreements ,
Likelihood of Confusion ,
Risk Management ,
Spam ,
Spoofing ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
In 2021, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board cancelled Great Concepts, LLC’s trademark registration for the mark DANTANNA’S for restaurant services under Section 14, after finding that counsel for the Registrant committed...more
11/1/2023
/ Appeals ,
Declaration of Use ,
Fraud ,
Incontestability Clauses ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
Trademark Cancellation ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Thank you for reading the October 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss the Federal Circuit’s recent case considering the scope of the USPTO’s authority to cancel registrations...more
11/1/2023
/ Advertising ,
Brand ,
Corporate Branding ,
Declaration of Use ,
E-Signatures ,
Enforcement ,
Fraud ,
Incontestability Clauses ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Signatures ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Cancellation ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Trademarks help brand owners build and communicate their brand’s reputation and value with the relevant public. Once that valuable goodwill is linked between a mark and the owner’s products and services, trademark owners can...more
9/1/2023
/ Abandonment ,
Brand ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
License Agreements ,
Third-Party ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Licenses ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Thank you for reading the August 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we conclude our series that explores ways to lose trademark rights with an examination of naked licensing, discuss a...more
9/1/2023
/ Abandonment ,
Change of Ownership ,
China ,
CNIPA ,
Domicile ,
Foreign Trademark ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
International Trademark Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
License Agreements ,
New Guidance ,
New Rules ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Third-Party ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Examination ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Licenses ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Suspensions ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO ,
WIPO
One of the signs of a healthy trademark is a certain level of distinctiveness. Distinctiveness is related to consumers’ love and recognition of a mark as an indicator of a product’s source, such that consumers trust the mark...more
8/1/2023
/ Acquired Distinctiveness ,
Brand ,
Corporate Branding ,
Generic Marks ,
Genericide ,
Goods or Services ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Thank you for reading the July 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we continue our three-part series that closely examines ways to lose trademark rights with a discussion of genericide. We...more
8/1/2023
/ Acquired Distinctiveness ,
Advertising ,
Brand ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Corporate Branding ,
Counterfeiting ,
Data Collection ,
Disclosure ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Generic Marks ,
Genericide ,
Goods or Services ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
Listing Rules ,
Marketing ,
Online Marketplace ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sellers ,
Third-Party ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
USPTO
There are plenty of fish in the sea when it comes to trademarks: from word marks to service marks; from symbols to surnames; from product packaging to product design. When the time is right, and you feel like you have found...more
7/5/2023
/ Abandonment ,
Advertising ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
Marketing ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Ownership ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
In 2006, rock band OK Go released a music video for their song “Here It Goes Again,” which featured the band members running back and forth on four treadmills set up side-by-side in what looks like an unfinished basement. The...more
Thank you for reading the January 2023 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss an ongoing trademark dispute between the band OK Go and cereal company Post, how to stay vigilant about...more
1/31/2023
/ Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
Domain Name Registration ,
Domain Names ,
False Association ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Hatch-Waxman ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Orange Book ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patents ,
Pharmaceutical Patents ,
Scams ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
Join Sterne Kessler attorneys for our inaugural Trademark Year in Review webinar, where speakers will offer summaries and analysis of particularly noteworthy cases from 2022, along with updates on the latest in U.S. trademark...more
In a recent court order out of the Eastern District of Washington, a judge denied the Plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction against Defendant’s use of the mark LEAVENWORTH OKTOBERFEST, based in part on Plaintiff’s...more
Thank you for reading the October 2022 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter. This month, we discuss an ongoing trademark suit involving a claim of irreparable harm, share the now open gTLD Sunrise periods,...more
10/28/2022
/ Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts Inc v Goldsmith ,
Cease and Desist ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyright Litigation ,
Domain Name Registration ,
Domain Names ,
Fair Use ,
False Advertising ,
gTLD ,
ICANN ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Irreparable Harm ,
Lanham Act ,
Oral Argument ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Sunrise Periods ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
Websites
In a recent precedential TTAB case, Chutter, Inc. v. Great Management Group, LLC and Chutter, Inc. v. Great Concepts, LLC, 21 USPQ2d 1001 (TTAB 2021), the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board found that reckless disregard for the...more
The October 2021 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses a precedential TTAB decision regarding fraud; the DEA's proposal to increase production quotas for several schedule I controlled substances,...more
10/26/2021
/ Cannabis Products ,
Clinical Trials ,
Controlled Substances ,
DEA ,
Domain Name Registration ,
Domain Names ,
False Statements ,
Fraud ,
gTLD ,
ICANN ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Quotas ,
Reckless Disregard ,
Research and Development ,
Schedule I Drugs ,
Sunrise Periods ,
Trademark Cancellation ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO ,
Websites
This month, Google has celebrated July 4th, the start of the 2020 summer Olympics, and Ángela Peralta's 175th birthday, to name a few, through its iconic Google Doodles found atop the Google search page. Google is one of many...more
[co-author: Richa Patel, Summer Associate]
The July 2021 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses fluid trademarks and the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act. Plus, check out the answer key...more
7/26/2021
/ Advertising ,
Artists ,
Brand ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Dietary Supplements ,
Dispensaries ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Fluid Trademarks ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Logos ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Marketing ,
Product Labels ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Recreational Use ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
TTB
In a recent non-precedential opinion, the TTAB affirmed a refusal to register Melissa & Doug, LLC’s red oval background mark (the “Proposed Mark”), finding that the acquired distinctiveness factors weighed against a finding...more
[co-author: Joseph Diorio, Law Clerk]
The January 2021 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses: a recent non-precedential TTAB decision on background designs; the Trademark Modernization Act;...more
1/29/2021
/ Acquired Distinctiveness ,
Cannabidiol (CBD) oil ,
Color Marks ,
Domain Names ,
gTLD ,
ICANN ,
Lanham Act ,
Sunrise Periods ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Modernization Act (TMA) ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO ,
Utility Patents
Effective January 2, 2021, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) will be adjusting – or introducing – a number of Trademark and Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) fees. This increase has been a long time coming: the...more
[co-author: Joseph Diorio, Law Clerk]
The November 2020 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses a rare failure-to-function refusal reversal at the TTAB, Google's efforts to combat counterfeit goods,...more
12/2/2020
/ Counterfeiting ,
Domain Names ,
Filing Fees ,
Google ,
gTLD ,
Online Marketplace ,
Reversal ,
Sunrise Periods ,
Trademark Application ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
USPTO
The May 2020 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses two recent precedential TTAB decisions – one regarding disclaimer scope and the other exploring how to successfully claim trademark rights in the...more