On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Apr 29, 2019 | Trademarks
Have you ever wondered what, exactly, can be trademarked? What if the trademark sounds like a dirty word? Would the government be able to decline to trademark something that many people would find offensive? Or would the First Amendment protect those who choose a...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Mar 8, 2019 | Trademarks
Before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) was founded, companies already had rights to their trademarks and service marks. These rights are established in common law and arise from the actual use of the mark. You still don’t have to register a trademark in...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Mar 25, 2015 | Trademarks
A domain name is often a valuable business asset that allows customers to find your website. Often times the business trademark is used as the domain name. For example, coatsandbennett.com is used by persons looking for information about our law firm....
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Jan 2, 2015 | Trademarks
Marcus Lemonis is the star of CNBC’s reality show “The Profit.” “The Profit” chronicles Lemonis’ relationships with ailing businesses. At the beginning of each episode, Lemonis offers cash-strapped business owners much-needed funds in exchange for an equity stake in...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Jun 10, 2014 | Trademarks
Trademark law, when properly applied and enforced, serves two functions of particular import. The first is protecting consumers from being misled as to the origin of goods and services found in the marketplace. The second is protecting product producers from having...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Sep 25, 2013 | Trademarks
They aren’t the Montagues or the Capulets, but their feud is just as legendary. The Hatfields and McCoys rose to infamy in the mid-to-late 1800s after a series of events more exciting and intriguing than what Shakespeare provided in fair Verona – think murders,...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Oct 13, 2011 | Trademarks
Many persons have been and continue to attempt to obtain a trademark registration for a variety of marks that include the name “Obama”. Examples include OBAMA YOU’RE FIRED, OBAMA GOT OSAMA, NOBAMA, and OBAMANOES. These applications are being rejected by the U.S....
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Oct 10, 2011 | Trademarks, Uncategorized
Boise State understandably values its role as an innovator in the use of bright blue turf for its football stadium. In fact, the university reckons that its blue turf is such an integral part of its identify that it applied for and received a federal trademark...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | Aug 10, 2011 | Trademarks
The maker of SLAP YA MAMA cajun seasoning has been fighting the maker of PUNCH YA DADDY cajun seasoning in a trademark infringement lawsuit since October 2009. Both parties have been slugging it out, with MAMA getting the better of it and forcing DADDY to change...
On Behalf of Coats & Bennett, PLLC | May 20, 2011 | Trademarks
On May 2, 2011, an elite group of U.S. Navy Seals, unofficially known as Seal Team 6, conducted a top secret mission that killed Osama bin Laden. On May 3, 2011, Disney Enterprises, Inc. filed three trademark applications for the mark SEAL TEAM 6. The Disney...
