I ♡ Trademarks NewsletterIssue #429
Bri Van Til | April 22, 2025
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USPTOday
The USPTO fee changes that took place earlier this year appear to disproportionately hurt the hemp industry.
Check out the USPTO’s live Q&A to discuss trademark pendency times and more.
The new Patent Fraud Detection and Mitigation Working Group has been formed to help identify and root out fraud at the USPTO.
By rescinding the Vidal Guidance, the USPTO has made it easier for PTAB to toss out IPR petitions.
FantAsia
In light of the trade war, China’s State Council has released a white paper outlining the country’s efforts to strengthen IP protections and pave the way for fair business dealings for foreign investors.
Here’s a great overview of recent changes in use requirements for trademarks in China.
Japan has registered the first trademark using its brand new consent system for trademarks that would be otherwise unregistrable.
China saw almost 3 million copyright registrations for software last year. For scale, that’s about 6x the number of copyrights in the US in the same time period. For everything. And their population is about 4x that of the US. TL;DR: it’s a lot.
USPTO attachés in Asia and elsewhere play a critical role in diplomatic IP relations. Come hear from some of them about the job, the experience, and how they can help you.
Cool Sports
Poor Utah is really struggling to secure a trademark for a name for its hockey team.
UK soccer (football?) player Cole Palmer has filed a trademark application for COLD PALMER. The headline of the article is decently punny, so I’ll save it for you to discover.
The Kelowna (a city in British Columbia) hockey team has filed Canadian trademark applications for a new logo.
At his girlfriend’s advice, Patriots General Manager Bill Bilichick is filing trademark applications for his catchphrases plus the words “(Bill’s Version)” appended to the end. Notably, the catchphrases themselves are already registered and owned by the Patriots. For example, the Patriots own this mark, and this is “Bill’s Version.” Cool. Good luck with that!
Professional Concerns
Howard (Kennedy) you like to work as a trademark attorney for this UK firm?
Sometimes an employer leaves you no choice but the Nuclear option. Which, apparently, means applying to be general counsel.
Cultivate your legal career as Associate Attorney at Blackgarden Law.
This general counsel position has Promise.
The grammar of this sentence might just kill me, but Hims & Hers is looking for an IP paralegal. If you get the job, will you work with hes and shes and theys?
Have an open role on your team? Send a link to your job listing to community@altlegal.com, and we’ll publish it in our next newsletter.
Odds and Ends
Congratulations to all the Alt Legal customers and community members on the shortlist for a WTR award!
Come to this webinar tomorrow to make sure your networking is worthwhile and that you know what to do after you meet dozens or hundreds of new people at conferences and other events.
Having plain-language explanations of trademark concepts—like this explanation of acceptable specimens for service marks—can be a great way to educate clients and draw in confused pro se filers.
OpenAi CEO Sam Altman is reportedly considering new funding models to help creators share in the company’s revenue when their works were instrumental in the software’s output. Here’s an analysis of Altman’s proposal.