Can you trademark an acronym? Acronyms are everywhere. They are like code language for those in the know. Even in the intellectual property world, our vernacular is filled with initialism. It can sound rather comical. “Yeah, my IP attorney said we got an OA with 101 and 103 rejections even though we filed PPH based […]
All posts by Vic Lin
Vic Lin
How to Cancel a Trademark Registration
How to Cancel a Registered Trademark As recently as a year ago, this article would have been written quite differently. A trademark cancellation filed with the TTAB would have been the only procedure to discuss. We’ll certainly delve into a TTAB cancellation in this post, but we now have a couple more ways to cancel […]
How to Deal with a Counterfeit Product or Claim
What is the difference between counterfeiting and trademark infringing? Is it fake? Whether or not a product is a counterfeit boils down to the degree of similarity. Are you dealing with a fraudulent imitation? If so, it might be a counterfeit. The difference between trademark infringement and counterfeiting is a matter of the extent of […]
What is a common law trademark?
How are trademark rights determined in the US? In the US, trademark rights are generally given to the first one to use a mark. Except for a few limited circumstances, the first user is the rightful trademark owner in the US. A common law trademark refers to the rights belonging to the first person or […]
Can you file a design patent to protect from infringement?
Can filing a design patent protect you from infringement? It depends. Patent professionals, including myself, constantly stress that a patent does not protect its owner from infringement. Anyone who has read my posts on the differences between patentability and infringement will understand this long-standing principle. You can own a patent and still infringe someone else’s […]
Patent owned by your company or you as an individual?
Should you own your patent as an individual or under your company? Startups frequently ask whether their patent should be owned by the company or the individual inventors. At the outset, a few disclaimers are in order. I’m not a tax attorney. Nothing herein should be construed as tax or financial advice. The IRS has […]
Design patent infringement: What is a substantially similar appearance?
What is the design patent infringement test? It’s simple to recite, but tricky to apply. The test for design patent infringement involves a visual comparison between the patented design and the accused product. Known as the ordinary observer test, the standard for determining design patent infringement basically asks whether the accused design would appear substantially […]
Trademark application: What is the most important factor in registering a mark?
What is the #1 factor in filing a trademark application? For many businesses thinking of registering a trademark, cost is the biggest factor. It is often the first and only question asked of our trademark filing services. I’m not surprised. Trademark filings have become commoditized. So it’s no surprise that would-be filers are searching for […]
Patent rejected: What happens next?
Will your patent be rejected? Almost certainly for a utility patent, and probably not for a design patent. Here are statistics on whether your patent will be rejected. A nonprovisional utility patent application has a roughly 90% probability of at least one rejection. A design patent application has an approximately 86% chance of approval. Basically, […]
How to Trademark in Metaverse: Is it possible to register trademarks for virtual goods?
Is it possible to register a trademark in the metaverse? Times are changing. What may have been unimaginable years ago has become a genuine concern for trademark owners who care about the virtual world. Yes, you can register trademarks for virtual goods with the USPTO. If you already own registered trademarks for goods and services […]