How to Apply for Federal and State Registration of Trademarks
How to Apply for Federal and State Registration of Trademarks
Obtaining trademark rights comes with numerous benefits to the owner of the trademark and at a very reasonable expense. Having a registered trademark means that you can promote your image and brand with more confidence given that the federal and state laws are leaning in your favor. Trademark registration is usually on the state level and national level. A federal trademark is traditionally offered by the United States Patent and Trademark Office while the state trademark is issued by the office of the Secretary of State. This article by http://pandapatent.com/ helps give more insight on how to apply for federal and state registration of patents.
Federal trademark application process
Applying requires that the name of the owner of the mark be used to file the mark. The information that is required to file the application include:
• The applicant’s official name.
• The country of citizenship for individuals or the state of the incorporation, in case it’s a corporation filing the application
• A description of the services or the goods that will use the mark
• The exact mark
• International classification of the services and goods
As stated earlier, federal registration of patents is handled by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The application requires the applicant to file the necessary application materials and these include:
• You can obtain the application form from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. This application form contains the declaration;
• The applicant’s name and address
• The date that the mark was first used
• A clear description of the types of goods and services that will bear the mark being registered
• The international classification of those products and services
• A clear copy of the mark itself
• At least specimens of the mark that are identical
• The trademark application fee
Upon a trademark applicant is submitting their application, the United States Patent and Trademark Office will review the application and check whether it meets all the set minimum requirements. Once they determine that all the minimum requirements have been met, the application will be assigned a serial number, and a receipt will be sent to the applicant about two months after they apply.
An examining attorney at the United States Patent and Trademark Office will then review the application four months after the request to determine whether the mark is eligible for registration. If they decide that the mark is not fit for the record, the attorney will issue an office action that lists the grounds for refusal and the corrections that need to be made in the application. If the revisions are minor, the applicant can be contacted via telephone for the corrections to be made.
Being issued an office action does not mean that the mark will not be registered in future. It is a widespread occurrence. An applicant who has been served with an office action is usually required to respond within six months. Failure to adhere to this time limit will result in the application being abandoned. If upon responding to the office action the response still does not overcome all the objections highlighted by the attorney, another office action will be issued. At this stage, the applicant can appeal their case to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
Applying for trademark registration at state level
Unlike trademarks registered with the federal government, trademarks recorded at the state level are only recognized in the given state they are documents in and not the entire country. The application process at the state level may vary slightly from one state to another, but the general process is the same. The applicant will need to their full official name, the exact mark to be registered, a description of the goods and the services that will bear the mark and their classification.
The application for the trademark is to be done at the office of the Secretary of State and not the United States Patent and Trademark Office. One has to ensure that all the necessary documents accompany their application for the process to take the least time possible. These document are almost similar to the ones one would submit when applying at the federal level. One will need an application form that can be obtained from the office of the Secretary of State, their name and physical address, the date which the mark was used for the first time, a copy of the actual mark and payment of the necessary application fees.
Upon applying, the same will be reviewed to determine if it meets all the requirements set. The first step usually is to determine whether the trademark is a trademark. If it passes this test, it will be checked whether the mark has been registered by someone else or not. It is essential to ensure that the trademark registered is distinct and unique. In case of any corrections that need to be made in the application, the applicant will be informed and required to make the necessary corrections.
It is important to note that the application has to be renewed every five years. Also, a federally registered trademark tramps over a state registered one and can be used across the United States.
