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Deciphering the USPTO's Material Alteration Standard for Amending Marks-
As brands mature over time, their owners often seek to update marks that are subject to a federal registration or registration application. In some cases, the impetus for the amendment may be deliberately to freshen, tweak, or otherwise modernize the subject mark. In other cases, brand owners may recognize after the fact that their current usage of a mark does not match the mark as originally registered or applied for.
The decision regarding whether to seek to amend the form of a mark goes well beyond just aesthetics, as there are two important legal considerations, particularly as to existing registrations. They are whether the amended mark will be deemed as abandoning the original form of the mark and whether the changes made will prevent the brand owner from tracing priority back to the original mark's date of first use and, in the case of a federally registered mark, its nationwide priority date. The latter consideration is also known as "tacking" and in contentious matters a decision on whether tacking is available will often control priority of rights between the brand owner and a challenger. See, Hana Fin., Inc. v. Hana Bank, 574 U.S. 418 (2015). When properly executed, some brand owners have many times successfully amended the same registration over the years with priority in the originally registered mark dating back a century or more.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
Judge Rules Shaquille O'Neal Will Face Securities Lawsuit for Promotion, Sale of NFTs
A federal district court in Miami, FL, has ruled that former National Basketball Association star Shaquille O'Neal will have to face a lawsuit over his promotion of unregistered securities in the form of cryptocurrency tokens and that he was a "seller" of these unregistered securities.
Blockchain Domains: New Developments for Brand Owners
Blockchain domain names offer decentralized alternatives to traditional DNS-based domain names, promising enhanced security, privacy and censorship resistance. However, these benefits come with significant challenges, particularly for brand owners seeking to protect their trademarks in these new digital spaces.
Coverage Issues Stemming from Dry Cleaner Contamination Suits
In recent years, there has been a growing number of dry cleaners claiming to be "organic," "green," or "eco-friendly." While that may be true with respect to some, many dry cleaners continue to use a cleaning method involving the use of a solvent called perchloroethylene, commonly known as perc. And, there seems to be an increasing number of lawsuits stemming from environmental problems associated with historic dry cleaning operations utilizing this chemical.
Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It
Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?