The United States Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit issued a ruling on November 14, 2016 that encouraged small business owners all over the country. This was a David and Goliath battle that started in 2009. The Christian Faith Fellowship Church (the “Church” or “Appellant”) takes on Goliath, Adidas AG, the…
A year ago, I posted a blog that featured a case that had appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (the “Federal Circuit”) and the Court reversed a decision by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB” or the “Board”). The case of In re St. Helena…
Most readers will know that Pinterest Inc. (“Pinterest”) owns a social media website that allows users to post content by creating pins on their virtual “pinboard” in subject matters such as fashion, food, recipes, travel and home decor. Pinterest maintains trademark registrations for the marks “PINTEREST” and for “PIN” and…
In an earlier blog post, I stated that there were two significant decisions on the subject of how to use third-party evidence to demonstrate a crowded field of similar marks for similar goods or services. See our blog post entitled The Federal Circuit Sends A Strong Message To The TTAB,…
The Federal Circuit recently issued two trademark decisions on the subject of third party use evidence and the weight that should be given to a crowded field argument. Both of these cases deserve attention. These decisions will have a significant impact on future decisions rendered by the Trademark Trial and…
The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Federal Circuit) vacated and remanded the matter of Princeton Vanguard, LLC vs. Frito-Lay North America, Inc. No. 2014-1517 (Fed. Cir. May 15, 2015) back to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. See our blog post entitled The TTAB Agrees With Frito Lay, Pretzel…
On March 24, 2015 the U.S. Supreme Court held there could be Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) decisions warranting a preclusive effect on judgments by federal district courts, reversing the Eighth Circuit’s decision and remanding the matter for further proceedings. Attorneys and litigants alike were eagerly awaiting this U.S.…
On December 19, 2014, in a precedential opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals, for the Federal Circuit overturned the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s (the “Board”) decision which had affirmed a Section 2(d) refusal. See In re St. Helena Hospital, 113 USPQ2d 1082 (Fed. Cir. 2014) [precedential]. The Federal Circuit has…
As most people know Swatch AG is a Swiss corporation that sells watches, clocks and jewelry. It owns three United States registrations for the trademark SWATCH. It filed a Notice of Opposition against Beehive Wholesale, L.L.C. Beehive is in the wholesale and retail business, selling multiple goods, including watches and…
One unusual aspect of trademark law is the existence of a dual legal system to resolve disputes. Litigants can choose to resolve their disputes through the United States Patent & Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) or initiate an action in the Federal court system. The TTAB is…