Category: Trademarks

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Foolishness in the design of USPTO’s TEAS system

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Article 6quinquies of the Paris Convention provides a filing path by which certain kinds of trademark applicants in the USPTO can rely upon previous filings outside of the US.  This path is sometimes called a “44e” path, from section 44(e) of the Lanham Act (15 USC § 1126).  An applicant making use of this filing basis is required to provide to the USPTO a copy of a registration certificate from the applicant’s home country (a country outside of the US).  The way this gets done these days is by means of the e-filing system called TEAS.  And the design of the TEAS system for this function is foolish, as I will describe. The foolish thing is that the TEAS system pukes on certified copies of registration certificates from the EUIPO. Continue reading “Foolishness in the design of USPTO’s TEAS system”

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The toteboards get mentioned

It was fun to see the 2021 trademark registration toteboard getting mentioned on social media within mere minutes of when the toteboard got posted.  You can see it here on LinkedIn:

Cantor Colburn LLP is proud to be top ranked in 2021 for patents and trademarks:  #4 for utility patents,  #5 for design patents, and  #6 for trademarks.

[…]

We also thank Harrity & Harrity, LLP Analytics for patent data and Carl Oppedahl’s Ant-like Persistence Toteboards for trademark data.

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Results: the 2021 US Tote Boards

Here are the results for the 2021 US Tote Boards.

The firm ranked first in filing of granted US plant patents in 2021 is Randall | Danskin.  The runner-up is Koenig IP Works, PLLC.  This is the third annual US Plant Patent Tote Board.

The firm ranked first in filing of granted US design patents in 2021 is Banner Witcoff.  The runner-up is Birch, Stewart, Kolasch & Birch, LLP.  This is the tenth annual US Design Patent Toteboard.

The firm ranked first in filing of granted US utility patents in 2021 is Oblon, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt, L.L.P.  The runner-up is Sughrue Mion PLLC.  This is the seventh annual US Utility Patent Toteboard.

The firm ranked first in filing of granted US trademark registrations in 2021 is Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, P.C.  The runner-up is Muncy, Geissler, Olds & Lowe, P.C.   This is the seventh annual US Trademark Registration Toteboard.

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Welcome developments with DAS – Georgia

This is a busy time for good news about DAS. 

The last time I blogged about Georgia and DAS was on March 20, 2019 (see article).  At that time, the news was that Georgia had joined the DAS system.

Now the news is that Georgia has joined the DAS system as an Accessing Office and as a Depositing Office with respect to trademark applications.  This took effect as of September 17, 2021.

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Welcome developments with DAS – Ireland

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This is a busy time for good news about DAS.  One piece of good news about DAS is that the Intellectual Property Office of Ireland will become an Accessing Office in DAS on February 17, 2022.  It will participate as an Accessing Office with respect to the following:

  • National industrial design applications
  • National patent applications
  • National trademark applications
  • National utility model applications
  • PCT international applications
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Five days remaining to hand in your numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards

Hello Folks.  There are five days remaining to hand in your numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards.

Every year, after the Tote Boards get finished and published, an email message will arrive from some law firm that did not hand in its numbers on time.  The law firm begs to please be included in one or another of the Tote Boards.  The result of course, is that some other firm that was, say, listed in third place in one of the Tote Boards might now end up in fourth place.  But that firm might already have posted on their web site that they had earned third place on a Tote Board!

The way to avoid such problems of course is simply for you to hand in your numbers before the closing date.  This year, the closing date will be Wednesday, February 2, 2022.  That is five days from now.  Please get your numbers in by the close of business on Wednesday, February, 2022.  To hand in your numbers, click here.

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Progress with the 2021 Tote Boards

Two business days have passed since I announced the opening of the opportunity for firms to hand in their numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards.  You can see the past tote boards here.  These are the listings of law firms, ranked according to which firms obtained how many patents and trademarks registrations for their clients in the previous calendar year.  

In these first two business days we have received reports from about two dozen firms.  

Clearly there are quite a few firms that have not yet handed in their numbers.

As a reminder, the questionnaires will close on Wednesday, February 2, 2022.  If you have not yet handed in your firm’s numbers, please do so right away.  There is no good reason to foot-drag on handing in your numbers.  

To hand in your numbers, click here.

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It is time to send in your numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards

Update:  The results are in.  You can see the results here.

You can see the past Tote Boards here. 

These Tote Boards are part of a tradition that extends back to 2012 when I published the first Design Patent Tote Board.  Please send in your numbers now. We will close the entries in two weeks, that is, on Wednesday, February 2, 2022.  Here are the four Tote Boards for which your numbers are needed.  Continue reading “It is time to send in your numbers for the 2021 Tote Boards”

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All USPTO systems seem to be broken

It looks like all USPTO systems (TEAS, MyUSPTO, Patentcenter, EFS-Web, PAIR) are broken or very very sluggish.  Listserv members are reporting timeouts, forced logouts, and lack of responsiveness from the USPTO systems.

As is so often the case during such crashes, there is no mention or acknowledgment of any of this on the USPTO system status page.

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Upcoming federal holidays and the USPTO

Friday, December 24, 2021 will be a federal holiday in the District of Columbia.  This means the USPTO will be closed that day.  This means that any action that might be due at the USPTO on December 24 or December 25 or December 26 will be timely if accomplished by Monday, December 27, 2021.

Friday, December 31, 2021 will be a federal holiday in the District of Columbia.  This means the USPTO will be closed that day.  This means that any action that might be due at the USPTO on December 31 or January 1 or January 2 will be timely if accomplished by Monday, January 3, 2022.