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<i>Matal v. Tam</i> and Viewpoint-Discriminatory Prohibitions Against Federal Registration

In <i>Matal v. Tam,</i> the SCOTUS held that a portion of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. §1052(a), prohibiting the federal registration of potentially disparaging trademarks and service marks, violated the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.

12 minute read August 01, 2017 at 12:04 AM
By
Theodore H. Davis Jr. and Samuel T. Kilb
<i>Matal v. Tam</i> and Viewpoint-Discriminatory Prohibitions Against Federal Registration

In Matal v. Tam, 137 S. Ct. 1744 (2017), the Supreme Court held that a portion of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. §1052(a), prohibiting the federal registration of potentially disparaging trademarks and service marks, violated the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.

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