4 Common Reasons for a Trademark Registration Refusal; JDSupra, June 22, 2017

Anderson Duff, JDSupra; 4 Common Reasons for a Trademark Registration Refusal

"When someone applies for a federal trademark registration with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), it is possible for the trademark registration application to be refused. While this is often disappointing, it is possible to appeal a trademark registration refusal. An experienced trademark registration lawyer will be able to help you understand your trademark registration grounds for refusal and can help you try to overcome the refusal, either by providing evidence of secondary meaning associated with your trademark, or through the appeals process.

Most Common Grounds for Trademark Registration Refusal

There are several possible grounds for trademark registration refusal, which include:

• Likelihood of confusion with an existing registered trademark.
• The trademark is merely descriptive.
• The trademark is deceptively misdescriptive.
• The trademark is primarily merely a surname."