IP & Technology Law Trends
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TTAB Continues to Trim Cannabis-Related Marks
Continuing the precedent established last month by In Re JJ206, LLC dba JuJu Joints, the TTAB recently released its decision in In re Ultra Trimmer, LLC, which affirms the PTO’s increased vigilance of cannabis-related trade and service marks. He...
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Christian Faith Fellowship Church is Going 12 Rounds with adidas AG in David-versus-Goliath Trademark Battle
Last week, Christian Faith Fellowship Church prevailed at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on its appeal of a final judgment of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) that, in response to a petition filed by adidas AG (Adidas),...
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Precedential TTAB Ruling Vaporizes Marijuana-Related Trademark Registrations
After the Patent and Trademark Office’s (PTO) youthful experimentation with allowing trademark registrations for “processed plant matter for medicinal purposes, namely medical marijuana” in 2010, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) has now ma...
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Free Speech and Functionality
The Founding Fathers ensconced intellectual property rights into the fabric of the original Constitution. Article I, Section 8, Clause 8, of the United States Constitution grants Congress the power "to promote the progress of science and useful arts,...
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Deadwood on the U.S. Trademark Register: Random Audit Pilot Program Proposed to be Made Permanent
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has long been concerned about so called "deadwood" on its register -- registrations granted where the registration is not being used or not used on all goods/services identified in the registration, but th...
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The Proposed TTAB Rules Package – What You Need to Know
On April 4, 2016, the U.S. Trademark Office announced the long-awaited proposed Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) rule changes. The TTAB hears appeals from denial of trademark registrations (ex parte appeals) and holds trials between parties in...
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