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J.J. Lee, Trademark Attorney

Learn something new every Thursday! Join over 4,000 entrepreneurs and business owners for weekly Trademark tips, tricks, and news.

Featured Post

⚖️How I Became a Trademark Attorney (and LEAP YEAR 🦘!)

LEAP YEAR: Feb 29, 2024 Happy Leap Year 2024 Reader! Today's featured video is how I became a Trademark attorney. Here is the video: TM Tips & Tricks: Speaking of videos ... We didn't realize until it was too late that our previous TWO newsletters were missing the videos! Here they are TEQUILA Trademarks: Zippo's Sensory Trademark: BUSINESS TIPS AND TRICKS Let's Do This Together Every Week! I've been wanting to read James Clear's Atomic Habits for a while, and I've been sitting on the audio...

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April 21, 2025 TMtelegram Hello Reader, Here’s another real-world lesson from the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) that highlights two common pitfalls brand owners face: 🔁 Choosing a name that’s too close to an existing mark🔁 Using a last name without understanding the trademark limits The case involved Wyse London, a fashion brand that applied to register its name for clothing and retail store services. But the USPTO refused registration on two separate grounds—and the TTAB agreed....

Guitars sit in a rack, awaiting performance.

April 13, 2025 TMtelegram Hello Reader, Gibson Guitars just won a big victory—and it’s a lesson in brand protection you don’t want to miss. After years of legal back-and-forth, a federal jury once again ruled in favor of Gibson in its trademark case against Dean Guitars (owned by Armadillo Enterprises). At stake? The rights to iconic guitar body shapes like the Flying V, Explorer, and SG. Here’s what the jury decided, straight from the court decision: 🎸 Yes – Dean infringed on Gibson’s...

Mush Overnight Oats

April 7, 2025 TMtelegram Hello Reader, You may have seen MUSH—the oat-based breakfast cups—on Costco shelves. My wife picked some up recently, and I thought it was a solid product. So I was surprised to learn the company behind it just lost their trademark battle at the USPTO. Mush Mush Foods, Inc. tried to register MUSH as a trademark for “ready-to-eat cereals” made with oats. But the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) ruled that “mush” is generic—meaning it's a common term for a type...

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March 31, 2025 TMtelegram Hello Reader, First, don’t worry—this is just helpful information! Your trademark has not been canceled. We’re sharing this because many trademark owners aren’t aware that registered trademarks can be canceled, sometimes without them even realizing it. What is Trademark Cancellation? A trademark cancellation is a legal action where someone challenges a registered trademark and asks the USPTO to remove it from the federal register. This can happen for several reasons,...

a piece of yellow paper with a red do not bed sticker on it

March 24, 2025 TMtelegram Hello Reader, As a trademark owner, you know how valuable your brand is. But what if someone tries to register a trademark that’s too close to yours? If you catch it early enough, you can stop it before it becomes a problem—without having to go through a full legal battle. One of the best tools for this is a Trademark Letter of Protest. What is a Letter of Protest? A Letter of Protest lets you alert the USPTO that a pending trademark conflicts with your existing...

A laptop computer sitting on top of a wooden desk

March 17, 2025 Hello Reader, If you own a registered trademark, you’ve already taken a big step in protecting your brand. But what happens if someone else registers a domain name that’s confusingly similar to your trademark? They might be using it to mislead customers, sell competing products, or hold it for ransom. This is where UDRP (Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy) comes in. It’s a powerful tool that lets trademark owners reclaim domain names from bad actors—without needing a...

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March 10, 2025 Hello Reader, I want to share an important warning about trademark mass filing companies and why using them could put your trademark at risk. The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) recently announced that they may cancel more than 40,000 trademarks because they were filed using fake or misleading information. Here’s what’s happening: Some companies pretend to be real trademark attorneys when they’re not. They use fake names, fake signatures, and false information to file...

man wearing white top using MacBook

March 3, 2025 Hello Reader, Did your trademark application get abandoned? Maybe you missed a deadline, forgot to file an extension, or didn’t submit the right paperwork after receiving a Notice of Allowance. Or maybe you didn’t respond to an Office Action in time. It happens more often than you think! But the good news is, we may still be able to bring it back—if we act fast. A trademark application can be abandoned for different reasons, including:❌ Not filing a Statement of Use or extension...

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February 24, 2025 Hello Reader, What if someone tried to register a trademark that’s too close to yours? That could lead to confusion, lost customers, and even harm to your brand. But here’s the good news—you don’t have to just sit and watch it happen! The USPTO allows businesses to oppose a trademark before it’s officially registered. This process is called a trademark opposition, and it’s a way to stop a problematic trademark before it gets final approval. Here’s how it works: 🚨 When...

green and white typewriter on black textile

February 17, 2025 Hello Reader, Imagine you’re saving a great name for your business, but someone else already has the trademark. The problem? They’re not even using it! That’s where the USPTO’s trademark reexamination and expungement come in—it’s like a cleanup crew for trademarks that shouldn’t be there. Here’s how it works: 🔍 Reexamination – If a trademark owner claimed they were using the trademark when they applied but really weren’t, their trademark can be challenged and possibly...