On Trademarks and Such
DQ Intellectual Property Advisor David Novak weights in on the Redskin trademark decision:
To answer your question, no, not exactly. In short,
the Redskins would still have common law trademark rights in their name and
logo as well as rights under various state laws. Having a federal registration
for a mark is certainly valuable (that’s why people get registrations), but it
is possible to enforce trademark rights without having a federal
registration. It’s just a little more complicated and expensive. As
funny as last season’s South Park episode Go Fund Yourself was, the law in it
wasn’t 100% accurate.
For an overview as to why there is a good possibility that
the trial court decision will be overturned and the Redskins will get to keep
their federal registration you should read this article by professor Eugene
Volokh. He’s a law professor at UCLA specializing in first amendment law
and has been following a similar dispute between the USPTO and a band
comprising five Asian-American gentlemen who want to register the name of their
band, The Slants: How an Asian American band name case may affect the Redskins trademark.
Standard disclaimer stuff: for information purposes only, doesn’t constitute legal
advice, there is no attorney-client relationship, blah, blah, blah.
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