USPTO | Bell Davis Pitt

New Fees At The Trademark Office To Deter Improper Claims Of Use

New Fees At The Trademark Office To Deter Improper Claims Of Use

Arthur J. DeBaugh

TMC (Trademark, Marketing & Copyright) Blog

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) is cracking down on inaccurate, improper, or fraudulent claims that a trademark is being used. Effective January 2, 2021, the USPTO will impose a $250 fee per Class if any goods are deleted from that Class due to an audit or during the examination of a registrant’s maintenance filing. Failure to pay the deletion fee will result in the cancellation of the entire registration in every Class.

hemp and cannabis products trademarks

What Cannabis and Cannabis-based Product Companies Need to Know about Federal Trademark Registration

September 3, 2019

Justin M. Hardy

TMC (Trademark, Marketing & Copyright) Blog

In 66% of the states in the United States, plus the District of Columbia, some level of marijuana use is legal under state law. In even more states, other cannabis-based products — such as CBD oil — are legal to some degree. Under federal law, however, cannabis remains a schedule 1 drug, which means that federal law says it has no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. That puts cannabis-based product companies in a tough spot with respect to protection of their trademarks.

Trademark explicit content

The Immoral, the Scandalous, and the USPTO

Arthur J. DeBaugh Kyle Heuser

TMC (Trademark, Marketing & Copyright) Blog

Shock value branding — brands that catch your eye with their use of profanity or potentially offensive language — can be risky business. From a trademark perspective, though, that is no longer the case.