Sharpen Your Sword: Adduce Proof When Claiming Prior Copyright to Challenge a Trademark in China
For startup founders, navigating the complexities of trademark law is essential for protecting your brand. An important aspect of this process involves understanding opposition and cancellation proceedings. These are formal...more
This spring, join our Smart & Biggar trademark experts and gain new insights at our popular Canadian Trademarks webinar series. Each webinar provides practical tips and strategies for global brand protection in Canada, with a...more
The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) circulated a draft amendment to the PRC Trademark Law (TML Draft Amendment) for public comment on January 13, 2023. The TML Draft Amendment is the product of...more
Exclusive rights over a trademark in Colombia arise solely from registration. Therefore, the general rule is that a trademark registered or protected under the legislation of a different country may not be used as valid...more
In theory, trademarks can last “forever.” Unlike copyrights and patents, which have finite durations defined by law, a trademark can last as long as its owner maintains it and continues to use it. As the US Patent and...more
A considerable amount of trademarks may also be protected by Chinese Copyright Law, when they meet the requirements of “work”. And the protection to works is NOT limited by the classification of goods, so claiming prior...more
TTAB Cancellation Actions: Terminating an Infringing Trademark Registration - You learn that another person or entity has a registered trademark at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (the “USPTO”) that is...more
Another person or entity has applied for a trademark at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (the “USPTO”) that is similar to your trademark. What can you do? One option is to institute an opposition with the...more
If you recently filed a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, you may have noticed that the average time to first action (initial examination) is about six months from the application’s filing date...more
Monster Energy Co. (“Monster Energy”), frequent trademark plaintiff, recently found itself on the receiving end of a trademark infringement lawsuit brought by California company Outdoor Pro Shop, Inc. (“Pro Shop”). Pro Shop’s...more
The August 2021 issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to Market® newsletter discusses Monster Energy's history of trademark disputes in the context of enhancing brand strength, tips for shortening the pendency of trademark filings...more
China, like the United States, is a party to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. As such, in general any literary or artistic work created in the US will also be protected in China....more
Beyoncé, named by Forbes as the Most Powerful Woman in Entertainment, has built a business empire that stretches into entertainment, fashion, major product endorsements, as well as music production and streaming distribution....more
With all of the business interruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, many worldwide trademark offices have taken steps to recognize the issues caused by the crisis. The offices in which applicants from the U.S. most...more
On June 17, 2019, Canada’s Trademarks Act changed, resulting in its modernization. Canada has now joined five international intellectual property treaties, including the Madrid Protocol, Singapore Treaty and Nice Agreement,...more
In an interesting case pending before the TTAB, law students from the Suffolk University IP and Entrepreneurship Clinic have opposed an application filed by United Trademark Holdings, Inc. to register RAPUNZEL as a trademark...more
In denying a doll maker’s motion to dismiss a mom’s opposition to the registration of the trademark RAPUNZEL, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) has relaxed the already liberal standard for what constitutes a “real...more
Rapunzel potentially was released from the trademark monopoly tower, not by her hair, but by trademark opposer and law professor Rebecca Curtin....more
Significant changes are coming to the Community Trade Mark or “CTM” starting in 2016. Since 1996, the CTM has provided a unitary trademark registration system to protect trademarks within the European Union, which now has 28...more