3 ms·
Check this out: https://tmep.uspto.gov/RDMS/TMEP/current#/current/TMEP-900d1e225.html https://tmep.uspto.gov/RDMS/TMEP/current#/current/TMEP-900d1... Just lik
by jawns 5y ago
Check this out:
https://tmep.uspto.gov/RDMS/TMEP/current#/current/TMEP-900d1e225.html https://tmep.uspto.gov/RDMS/TMEP/current#/current/TMEP-900d1...
Just like patents have a concept of "prior art," trademarks have a concept of "first use in commerce."
If you can demonstrate that you were the first to use the trademark, you have less to worry about (but nothing's guaranteed until litigated).
HOWEVER, if the party that registered the trademark can demonstrate that they used it prior to you, regardless of when they registered it, then they may have the upper hand.
This is probably not DIY territory; consult a lawyer knowledgable about trademark law to help you determine how to respond.
They may, in fact, recommend that you countersue for infringement. Might not be worth your time to pursue, but at least in theory you could claim that they're infringing on your trademark, because the U.S. follows a "first to use" rather than a "first to file" trademark system.
- nprateem 5y agoI'd love to know what that means in plain English especially since the trademark has already been granted.
- jeremyjh 5y agoAcquiring a trademark just sets a floor for when you acquired the trademark, it doesn't mean someone else hasn't already acquired it - that is a question that courts have to settle.
- masklinn 5y ago> it doesn't mean someone else hasn't already acquired it It goes further than that: trademarks are registered in 45 different classes and trademarks of different classes are completely independent, but the USPTO goes by > "Trademark, same name, same class” meaning more than one entity can register the same trademark name in the same class, because trademarks have a requirement of distinctiveness.