Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Food Industry trademarks

Many of my recent trademark filings have been for food products. Certainly in this highly competitive industry, a memorable name (to go along with a great product) can mean the difference between success and failure. Some common isues that have arisen in registration include:

1. Is the name sufficiently unique? It may not be enough that there are no other food related products that are similarly named. The trademark examining attorneys at the U. S. Patent and Trademrk Office will often raise flags on the grounds that the holder of an existing trademark, in an arguably related field, may want to expand. I recently confronted this in a matter involving a nutrition drink and a chiropractor. Because the chiropractor had a previously registered trademark in a portion of the phrase our client sought to use for a nutrition drink, and he used the trademark in connection with nutritional services he provided, the trademark examining attorney raised the possibility that the doctor might move into providing goods and issued a provisional refusal. The matter is yet to be resolved.

2. Is the proposed trademark simply a foreign word or phrase for a common English word? If the answer to the question posed is "yes", no trademark will issue (when proposed as a trademark for a related product or service). The USPTO requies you to provide the English translation of foreign words. One could not get a trademark for "Coche" for motor vehicles, as it is simply the Spanish word for car.

3. Is the proposed trademark the surname of a living person? If you intend to use a surname as a trademark (even if it is your own), you will need the permission of the living person whose name you are using. Permission has to be in writing and filed with the application.

A little advance planning (and searching) can go along way to mimimize these and other issues.

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