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
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
Suppose that you are a foreign applicant who either files a trademark application, opposition proceeding, or cancellation proceeding with the USPTO. Can this act of filing subject the foreign applicant to service of process...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on June 1, 2022, issued an order in favor of Barclays Capital Inc. (Barclays) in relation to its opposition to a trademark application for LEHMAN BROTHERS. The court affirmed...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
Earlier this month, the Trademark Trial & Appeal Board (TTAB) issued a precedential ruling that the term “Gruyere” for cheese is generic. In 2015, Swiss and French industry groups sought a certification mark for the term,...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 December 4, 2019, the Scotch Whiskey Association filed opposition to the trademark application of ASW Distillery LLC, an Atlanta distiller, that was seeking the mark BURNS NIGHT for an American malt whiskey, noticeably...more
Most opposition proceedings in the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the USPTO settle before final judgment, often based on a negotiated settlement agreement requiring the abandonment of the opposed application. In these...more
After you file a trademark application for your brewery name or a beer name there are a couple different paths the application could take, not all of them good. This article will focus on some of those paths....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
Back in February, we covered the trademark dispute between the U.S. Army and the Las Vegas Golden Knights professional ice hockey team. As we predicted, the Army and the Golden Knights have now settled that matter by...more
The Vegas Golden Knights, an expansion team based in Las Vegas that joined the National Hockey League (NHL) earlier this year, have had a surprisingly successful “rookie year,” both on the ice and at the box office. This...more
There’s good news for trademark owners who want to protect the value of their marks: Recent changes to the rules governing trademark opposition and cancellation proceedings have made those proceedings more efficient and...more
Under U.S. trademark law, any person (including a celebrity) can obtain a trademark registration for their name if they can establish that the public recognizes the name as a source identifier for certain products or...more
The NCAA has a well-deserved reputation for being quite zealous when it comes to protecting its registered trademark “March Madness.” We previously blogged about this here at TheTMCA.com. But a recent opposition filed by the...more
On April 4, 2016 the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that details proposed changes to the USPTO’s rules of practice for trademark application opposition and...more
Similar to the laws of the EU and its member states, as well as other countries around the world, U.S. trademark law provides a mechanism through which parties with standing can oppose pending third-party applications or seek...more