Source: http://responseofficeaction.com/m.trademarkresponse.html
Timestamp: 2017-03-26 03:17:47
Document Index: 57052623

Matched Legal Cases: ['§2', '§1212', '§2', '§2', '§1212', '§2', '§1212', '§1212', '§1052', '§2', '§1211', '§1062']

What happens to a trademark or patent application when an Office Action from the USPTO goes unanswered? The application will be declared abandoned at the end of the allowed response time. This is applicable both for unanswered non-final actions as well as unanswered final actions. Note: the notice of abandonment will be issued later than the effective date of abandonment. Timely Response: If you have received by mail or email an: Office Action from an examining attorney regarding your application;a Priority Action; an Examiner's Amendment/Priority Action (where a response is still required for the "Priority Action" portion);" or a Suspension Inquiry letter, you must respond within six (6) months of the mailing date of the Office action or your application will abandon. If the Office Action is a "Priority Action," responding within two (2) months will give you priority handling; however, you do have the full six (6) month response period, if necessary. This means that your email response must arrive on the USPTO server prior to Midnight, Eastern Standard Time, of the last day of the response period- any problem with transmission will not excuse an untimely response. Should the last day of the response period fall on a Saturday, Sunday or U.S. Federal Holiday, you may submit your response prior to Midnight, Eastern Standard Time, of the next regular business day and it will still be considered timely.
TMEP 303.01 For paper correspondence, the date of actual receipt in the USPTO is assigned as the filing date of all correspondence. (TEAS and TEAS Plus correspondence must be filed electronically.)
Responses are fact dependent and rely on understanding both the law and how to apply the facts to the law. Failure to respond is the leading cause of trademark application abandonments. Only 30% of TEAS Plus applications proceed to publishing for opposition without an office action refusal (the percentage is worse for TEAS). Overcoming a refusal without knowledge and experience in trademark law is difficult and many refusals can’t be overcome even with knowledge and experience because the applications were for trademarks that have serious Likelihood of Confusion issues with registered or pending trademarks. Sometimes, the likelihood of confusion is with a junior user, someone who started using the mark later but got their application in sooner. In cases like this, a cancellation proceeding may be the answer for the senior, prior user who was late in getting their application into the USPTO.
Here’s some general purpose information on overcoming trademark refusals:
Overcoming Geographically Descriptive Refusal Example of common refusal: Geographic terms: As a general rule, trademarks involving a geographical term are "weak" and are entitled to a narrow scope of protection. Depending on the facts, to overcome the refusal the link between the geographic mark and the term can be disputed, an exception can be argued, acquired distinctiveness can be argued, or an amendment to the Supplemental Register may be possible. A mark that is composed entirely of a geographic term may be registrable only on the Supplemental Register or on the Principal Register upon proving acquired distinctiveness (that mark has become distinctive of that party's goods in commerce). If you wanted to start stronger: A mark that is a composite of a geographic term and a distinctive term may be able to register on the Principal Register if the geographic term can be disclaimed and the remaining part of the composite term is distinctive. Planning for a strong trademark from the beginning can not only avoid refusals but can also lead to a trademark with a wider scope of protection. (Are never-ending legal fees protecting a weak mark a good strategy?)
Overcoming a Likelihood of Confusion Refusal Or Opposition
A federal, state, and common law trademark search and clearance (conflict analysis) can verify the right to use the proposed mark by verifying no prior owner has acquired the right by use or registration in federal, state, or common law markets (registered and unregistered). No search can uncover every used mark but doing a thorough search can substantially decrease the risk of having an opposed trademark or an infringing trademark. ASK ABOUT OUR HALF PRICE SEARCH!!
Not Just Patents ® Legal Services generally answers refusals for any of our application clients as part of the service at no extra charge. An exception to the no charge for answering a refusal would be if the client decided against a trademark search or went against advice on the implications of a trademark search and the application was refused on the basis of a previously identified likelihood of confusion. We also answer refusals for clients who have used other services and sometimes will even offer a discounted service if you used one of the form services who really messed up your application.
If the examining attorney has refused your mark for any substantive legal reason, you are entitled to submit arguments in support of registration. If you are going to try and answer the refusal yourself, you should simply and completely address the points raised by the examining attorney in the Office Action. Applicants are not required to provide case law support but may if it is appropriate. If the examining attorney is convinced by your arguments, the examining attorney will withdraw the refusal(s). If not convinced, and assuming there are no other outstanding issues, the examining attorney will issue a final refusal. Sometimes the examining attorneys give suggestions on how to overcome refusals, an example of actual instructions from a trademark examiner on how to overcome a surname refusal is below in red.
Response Options for Surname Refusal
A mark deemed primarily merely a surname may be registered on the Principal Register under Trademark Act Section 2(f) by satisfying one of the following:
(1) Submitting a claim of ownership of one or more prior registrations on the Principal Register for a mark that is the same as the mark in the application and for the same or related goods and/or services. 37 C.F.R. §2.41(b); TMEP §1212.04.;
(2) Submitting the following statement, verified with an affidavit or signed declaration under 37 C.F.R. §§2.20, 2.33: “The mark has become distinctive of the goods and/or services through applicant’s substantially exclusive and continuous use in commerce for at least the five years immediately before the date of this statement.” 37 C.F.R. §2.41(b); TMEP §1212.05(d).; or
(3) Submitting actual evidence of acquired distinctiveness. 37 C.F.R. §2.41(a); TMEP §1212.06, Such evidence may include the following: examples of advertising and promotional materials that specifically promote the applied-for mark as a trademark or service mark in the United States; dollar figures for advertising devoted to such promotion; dealer and consumer statements of recognition of the applied-for mark as a trademark or service mark; and any other evidence that establishes recognition of the applied-for mark as a source-identifier for the goods and/or services. See In re Ideal Indus., Inc., 508 F.2d 1336, 184 USPQ 487 (C.C.P.A. 1975); In re Instant Transactions Corp. of Am., 201 USPQ 957 (TTAB 1979); TMEP §§1212.06 et seq.
Trademark Act Section 2(f), 15 U.S.C. §1052(f); see 37 C.F.R. §2.41; TMEP §§1211, 1212.
TRADEMARK RESPONSE TIME/TRADMARK ABANDONMENT
The response time for an office action for a Trademark Application is six months from the mailing date of the office action. After that time the application is declared abandoned. TMEP 718.02 Failure by Applicant to Take Required Action During Statutory Period 15 U.S.C. §1062(b). If the applicant is found not entitled to registration, the examiner shall advise the applicant thereof and of the reason therefor. The applicant shall have a period of six months in which to reply or amend his application, which shall then be reexamined. This procedure may be repeated until (1) the examiner finally refuses registration of the mark or (2) the applicant fails for a period of six months to reply or amend or appeal, whereupon the application shall be deemed to have been abandoned, unless it can be shown to the satisfaction of the Director that the delay in responding was unintentional, whereupon such time may be extended.
Office actions are first action correspondences from the assigned USPTO trademark examiner that set forth the legal status of a trademark application if the trademark application does NOT meet registration requirements. There are several types of office actions: 1. Examiner’s amendments; 2. Priority actions; 3. Office actions (non-final and final); and
4. Suspension letters. Note: If the trademark DOES meet registration requirements, the first action of the USPTO (the ‘TRAM Snapshot of App at Pub for Oppostn’) may go unnoticed by the applicant until the applicant receives a postcard or email of the ‘Notice of Publication.’
(from http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/process/update/oa.jsp) 1. Examiner’s Amendment
GENERAL INFORMATION ON HOW TO RESPOND TO OFFICE ACTIONS There is no set form or required format for responding to an office action. Applicants should address each issue raised by the examining attorney. Very often the trademark examiner will give advice on how to answer the office action. Actual examples of responses suggested by a trademark examiner follow. The first is for a ornamental refusal on a t-shirt is (very common refusal):
Applicant may respond to this refusal by (1) submitting evidence that the mark has been used on at least two recordings, and (2) amending the identification of goods to state that the sound recordings comprise a series, i.e., series of pre-recorded compact discs, Digital Versatile Disk, audio cassettes, video cassettes, and phonograph records, all featuring music and/or musical performances; Downloadable musical sound recordings; Downloadable video recordings featuring music and/or musical performances, in Class 9. M.Office Action Response
m Trademark Response
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