I write today regarding a squirrelly thought: are the benefits of registering a hashtag trademark almost always outweighed by the consequences? In light of a recent Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) ruling and the Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure’s (“TMEP”) provisions, hashtag marks offer much less protection than traditional character-based marks,
As Steve blogged earlier this week, we’ve had a lot of “zero” on the mind lately—marks related to the word and numeral. It got me thinking about the letter ‘O,’ especially since it has been in recent trademark news.
If you missed it, The Ohio State University and Oklahoma State University are now
The trademark ST. ROCH MARKET is at the heart of a dispute in New Orleans (aka NOLA). The City of New Orleans is battling in court with the current lessee of the building associated with the trademark.
ROCH MARKET has been associated with a popular market in New Orleans since 1875. Prior to Hurricane Katrina,
— Jessica Gutierrez Alm, Attorney
Earlier this month, the United States Postal Service (USPS) was ordered to pay $3.5 million in damages to a sculptor for copyright infringement.
Seeking a unique redesign for its “Forever” stamps, the USPS searched stock photos for images of the Statue of Liberty. They found a particularly striking photo
When can a brand owner lawfully use a competitor’s trademark on the brand owner’s product?
Over the years, we’ve lifted away a lot of dust on the hairy subjects of classic trademark fair use, nominative fair use, and comparative advertising, especially in the context of billboard ads.
It isn’t every day
Hawaii seems to be on the mind here at DuetsBlog lately. Last week, I had the pleasure of visiting three Hawaiian islands for the first time. While there, I quickly became acquainted with Hawaiian life and language. It’s a beautiful place; I recommend everyone visit.
When I first landed on Kauai, the “garden island,”
They say you can’t run away from your past, it will eventually catch up to you. Sazerac Brands may have just learned that lesson the hard way, thanks to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Sazerac Brands owns rights in the OLD TAYLOR and COLONEL E.H. TAYLOR brands of whiskey (distilled at Sazerac’s Buffalo Trace
North Memorial is pressing up its commitment to using the Google mark on outdoor billboards:
I have the same questions from last month for its digital campaign in the Minneapolis skyway.
And one more: Will this increased visibility result in an emergency, calling for a Juris Doctor?
About a week ago, we reported on an interesting case out of the Southern District of Texas involving two competing convenience stores with cartoon animal mascots: Buc-ee’s (a beaver) and Choke Canyon (an alligator).
As someone who has personally visited Buc-ee’s stores, I can tell you that they are quite the destination. Buc-ee’s tend to
In recent USPTO news, Trader Joe’s, the supermarket chain known for its eclectic and unique foodstuffs, recently filed an opposition to registration of the mark “Trader Schmo,” which is described as designating a wide variety of Kosher foods. Understandably, Trader Joe’s took issue with the mark, and particularly its use in the