Every USPTO system relating to assignments is broken today.
Continue reading “Every USPTO system relating to assignments is broken today”
Upcoming opportunity for Madrid Protocol docketing training
As a reminder, folks, there is an upcoming opportunity for training on Madrid Protocol docketing, at which I am the presenter.
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- National Docketing Association annual meeting, San Diego (brochure page):
- Tuesday, October 7, 2PM PT – Madrid Protocol Docketing (60 minutes)
- National Docketing Association annual meeting, San Diego (brochure page):
Reduction In Force at the USPTO
An article just now in The Guardian says:
In a memo seen by the Guardian, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced a “reduction in force” (RIF) program of layoffs at the agency on Wednesday, the first reported agency to do so.
“Approximately one percent of the USPTO workforce will be affected by this RIF,” wrote Valencia Martin Wallace, acting commissioner for the USPTO, wrote to employees at the agency. The USPTO did not respond to a request for comment
USPTO discontinues recognizing Madrid Protocol status
The USPTO has apparently discontinued recognizing the Madrid Protocol status of US trademark registrations. Nobody outside the USPTO knows why. Continue reading “USPTO discontinues recognizing Madrid Protocol status”
USPTO blinks on shutdown of familiar assignment searches
(Update: every USPTO system relating to assignments is now broken on October 16, 2025, see blog article.)
On August 27, 2025, the USPTO said (quoted at right) that Saturday, September 27, 2025 was the day that the USPTO would shut down the two familiar assignment search systems, forcing users over to a new assignment search function in Assignment Center.
It appears the USPTO has blinked and will postpone this shutdown for about three weeks, until Monday, October 20, 2025. Continue reading “USPTO blinks on shutdown of familiar assignment searches”
“They’ve cut us off at the knees!” — USPTO call center employee
“They’ve cut us off at the knees!” is what I heard a few days ago from a USPTO representative in one of the USPTO’s call centers. Continue reading ““They’ve cut us off at the knees!” — USPTO call center employee”
USPTO fails to handle system failure well
As I reported in an earlier blog article, Trademark Center is broken for trademark applications in which the mark is a logo. USPTO is failing to handle this failure well. Continue reading “USPTO fails to handle system failure well”
USPTO’s Trademark Center is broken for logo applications
January 18, 2025 was the day that the USPTO shut down TEAS for the filing of new US trademark applications. Starting that day, the only way to file a US trademark application has been Trademark Center.
And now, as of a couple of days ago, Trademark Center has been broken for trademark applications in which the mark is a logo (rather than standard characters). The practitioner prepares the application and sends it to the client for review and possible e-signature. The client clicks on the link to review the application, and within seconds, Trademark Center jumps abruptly to its main page. It is impossible for the client to review or e-sign the application.
This was first reported two days ago by an alert trademark practitioner in the E-Trademarks Listerv, which is a community of over a thousand trademark practitioners.
How to reach a USPTO person if you can’t reach them by phone
In a previous blog article I described that it seems all of the phones at the USPTO are broken for incoming calls. Here is a practice tip.
If the person’s phone number starts “571-272”, then change the “272” to “273”. This yields a telephone number that is probably that person’s private fax number. You can then send a fax and ask the person to call you back.
All USPTO phones seem to be broken
From recent discussions on the Patent Practice listserv, it seems that it is impossible just now to place a telephone call to anyone at the USPTO. Continue reading “All USPTO phones seem to be broken”