Intellectual Property

Boston College Law School

April 4, 2008

Trademark – Priority, Registration

Requirements• Lanham Act § 45 (15 U.S.C. § 1125)

– Trademark. The term “trademark” includes any word, name, symbol, or device, or any combination thereof -

• (1) used by a person, or• (2) which a person has a bona fide intention to use in

commerce and applies to register …

– to identify and distinguish his or her goods … from those manufactured or sold by others and to indicate the source of the goods ….

Advantages of Registration

• Nationwide constructive use - priority

• Nationwide constructive notice

• Possibility of achieving incontestability

• Presumption of validity at trial

• Right to sue in federal court

• Availability of extra remedies (e.g. attorney fees, treble damages, border exclusion …)

Registration Process

• Clearing the trademark

• Start use or have bona fide intent to use

• File application

• Examination by PTO

• Publication in Official Gazette

• Registration– Or if intent to use, notice of allowance and later

filing of statement of use; then registration

Bars to Registration

• Lanham Act §2: – (a) Immoral, scandalous, deceptive; disparages

– (b) Flag, coat of arms, insignia of U.S., state, etc.

– (c) Name, portrait, signature of living individual

– (d) Likely to cause confusion with other mark

– (e) Consists of mark that is:• (1) merely descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive

• (2) primarily geographically descriptive

• (3) primarily geographically deceptively misdescriptive

• (4) primarily a surname

• (5) functional

Bars - Immoral, Scandalous

• Lanham Act §2:– Shall register mark unless it:

• “(a) Consists of or comprises immoral, deceptive, or scandalous matter, or matter which may disparage or falsely suggest a connection with persons, living or dead, institutions, beliefs, or national symbols, or bring them into contempt or disrepute”

Harjo v. Pro-Football, Inc.

Other Examples

“Jesus Christ” brand beer

Bars to Registration

• Lanham Act §2: – (a) Immoral, scandalous, deceptive; disparages

– (b) Flag, coat of arms, insignia of U.S., state, etc.

– (c) Name, portrait, signature of living individual

– (d) Likely to cause confusion with other mark

– (e) Consists of mark that is:• (1) merely descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive

• (2) primarily geographically descriptive

• (3) primarily geographically deceptively misdescriptive

• (4) primarily a surname

• (5) functional

Examples• Lanham Act §2(e) - Examples:

– Descriptive 2(e)(1)• E.g. “ORGANIC” for organically grown oranges

– Deceptive 2(a)• E.g. “ORGANIC” for non-organic oranges

– Deceptively misdescriptive 2(e)(1)• E.g. “JOE’S FAVORITE” for oranges that aren’t Joe’s favorite

– Geographically descriptive 2(e)(2)• E.g. “FLORIDA” for Florida oranges

– Geographically deceptive• E.g. “FLORIDA” for Georgia oranges

– Geographically deceptively misdescriptive 2(e)(3)• E.g. “FLORIDA” for auto parts

– Arbitrary (geographically nondeceptively misdescriptive)• E.g. “ANTARCTIC” for Georgia oranges

Bars to Registration

• Lanham Act §2: – (a) Immoral, scandalous, deceptive; disparages

– (b) Flag, coat of arms, insignia of U.S., state, etc.

– (c) Name, portrait, signature of living individual

– (d) Likely to cause confusion with other mark

– (e) Consists of mark that is:• (1) merely descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive

• (2) primarily geographically descriptive

• (3) primarily geographically deceptively misdescriptive

• (4) primarily a surname

• (5) functional

Administrative

• Next class– Read through VI.D.2 – Likelihood of

Confusion

Examples, Redux

Geographic

DescriptiveFlorida

(Florida Oranges)

Misdescriptive

NondeceptivelyAntarctic

(Florida Oranges)

DeceptivelyFlorida

(Georgia Oranges)

§2(e)(2) - Can register if Secondary Meaning

§2(e)(3) - Cannot register

Arbitrary or suggestive - Can register