In In re IGT, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) affirmed the Examiner’s refusal to register geometric shapes used in the applicant’s gaming machines.

While the decision does not offer anything new or surprising from a trademark perspective, it is a good example of the challenges in obtaining trademark registrations for geometric shapes, especially if the shapes are used merely as borders for information or as background. » Read More

The first U.S. plant patent has been issued on a variety of hemp, which is by federal law a cannabis plant with less than 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol. See our post, “The USPTO Issues First Hemp Plant Variety Patent; Expect More to Come,” on our cannabis law blog, Legally Grown, to read more. » Read More

Sour Patch Kids-maker Mondelëz Canada Inc. (“MCI”) has filed a trademark lawsuit against a THC-infused gummies maker selling under the brand “Stoney Patch.” July 19, 2019, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Mondelëz Canada Inc. » Read More

Cannabis-related U.S. patents have been issued since at least the mid-1990s. But if the only way to practice a cannabis patent involves breaking federal law, does the patent lack utility?  See our post, “What’s the Use – Do Cannabis Patents Have Utility? » Read More

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently issued helpful guidance on the examination of cannabis trademark applications.  This guidance is the USPTO’s first pronouncement of how it will evaluate the legal use in commerce requirement for trademark applications covering cannabis goods and services.   » Read More

The term of a U.S. patent is typically twenty years.  However, the patent term can be altered as a result of certain Patent Office delays (patent term adjustment) and certain regulatory delays (patent term extensions).  For the former, the Patent Office will adjust the term on a day‑for‑day basis: one day of delay results in one day of adjustment.  » Read More

In In re Jeffrey Butscher, Serial No. 87572095, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) reversed the Examiner’s refusal to permit the trademark registration of the mark CANNABIS CANNIBALS for “entertainment services, namely, an ongoing series featuring animated cannabis smoking cannibals provided through network or cable TV and the internet.”  » Read More

Despite the widely diverging needs of the different industries that make use of the US patent system, US patent law applies essentially the same rules to innovations from all technology fields. This means that drug and biotechnology-based inventions are treated no differently by the U.S. » Read More

Santa’s making a list and checking it twice.  With the help of his trademark elves, he’s going to find out whether brand owners have been naughty or nice when it comes to using their trademarks properly.  Those on the Nice List get rewarded with the ultimate Christmas present… enforceable trademark rights!  » Read More

Patentability

The position of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on trademarks for cannabis-related goods and services is discussed in my colleague’s blog post, “Trademark Registration for Cannabis Trademark Owners a Legal Haze.”

Unlike in the case of trademarks, patentability of cannabis-related products and processes is much more clear-cut. » Read More