In an interesting case pending before the TTAB, law students from the Suffolk University IP and Entrepreneurship Clinic have opposed an application filed by United Trademark Holdings, Inc. to register RAPUNZEL as a trademark for dolls and toy figures. The students, led by clinic director Loletta “Lolita” Darden, represent Professor Rebecca Curtin, a trademark law professor and mother of a young girl who has purchased dolls. … More
Tag Archives: Descriptive
America’s First Ice Cream Trademark Infringement Case … Was “FRENCH”
This weekend marks Bastille Day in France and also National Ice Cream Day in the United States, so it’s the perfect time to recount the very first ice cream-related trademark lawsuit in the U.S. (or at least the earliest one available to us): French Brothers Dairy v. Giacin.
The story began in 1842, when Thomas Joseph French of Sussex,… More
Connecting The DOTBLOG: Is Your Trademark Descriptive Or Suggestive?
When you see the name DOTBLOG, what does it mean to you? Is it just a blog about DOTS candy? Or about the painter George Seurat? Maybe it indicates a service that will help you punctuate your blog entries? Ok, probably not, but it must have something to do with blogs, right? Or something online, perhaps? If these assumptions are correct, does that make the mark merely descriptive for trademark purposes? … More