Trademark System Bias


Welcome to a series about the threat and impact of questionable trademarks.
Scroll to the bottom for an ordered list of posts, or go to the Index.

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Link: Search the Trademark Official Gazette

Here’s the link to search the Trademark Official Gazette. Use it to find frivolous trademark applications that have been recently published for opposition. (Note that if the publication date is over 30 days ago, it’s too late to file a Letter of Protest.)

Here are the boxes I check on the left sidebar when using this:

Select Issues: choose dates up to 30 days ago.
Reason for Publication: Opposition
Class Numbers: Leave Blank. If there are too many results, select “International Class” and check only the classes that concern you most:

  • 06 – Metal Goods
  • 09 – PopSockets
  • 14 – Jewelry
  • 16 – Paper Goods
  • 18 – Leather Goods
  • 20 – Furniture & Articles Not Otherwise Classified
  • 21 – Housewares & Glass Products
  • 24 – Fabrics & Textiles
  • 35 – Advertising & Business (Online Store)
  • 40 – Custom Imprinting
  • 42 – Custom Design of Apparel

Leave the other options blank. If you want to pare it down to the most likely problem areas, scroll down to the Basis option and select “Intent to Use” (this is the biggest loophole exploited by trademark trolls).

It’s a good idea to monitor this at least every other week to catch marks that may hinder your business. However, it’s far better to catch them early in the process. I’ll show you how to search and review new applications in a separate post.