Essay Sample on Trademarks and Registrations

Introduction

A trademark refers to a sign that distinguishes the goods and services of a particular entity from those from other entities. Usually, a trademark is protected by intellectual property rights. Upon registering a trademark, the entity thus acquires the right to use the trademark. Since it is a requirement by the law to register the trademark, an entity has the right to sue any other party that uses or imitates the registered trademark. Also, the law stipulates the rules and guidelines that govern the selection and registration of trademarks. In this case, while choosing a trademark, entities are bound to follow these rules including avoiding using offensive names. The paper thus aims at analyzing a case presented to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board regarding trademarks and registration ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185," 2018). The analysis will encompass the important facts, the legal issues, the jurisdiction, the legal on the case, and finally develop a business action plan.

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The Parties

The case involves two parties including the petitioners and the respondent. The petitioners entail five Native Americans who include Amanda Blackhorse, Marcus Briggs-Cloud, Philip Gover, Jillian Pappan, and Courtney Tsotigh while the respondent is the Pro-Football, Inc ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185," 2018).

Important Facts

The case involves a petition presented to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board by the five Native Americans who petition for the cancellation of the trademark registration issued to the respondent, Pro-Football, Inc. between 1967 and 1990 ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185," 2018).The witnesses include Jesse A. Witten, Jeffrey J. Lopez, John D. V. Ferman, Lee Roach and Stephen Wallace of Drinker, Biddle & Reath LLP representing the petitioners while Robert L. Raskopf, Claudia T. Bogdanos and Todd Anten of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP represented the respondent. The petition was presented before Kuhlke, Cataldo and Bergsman who are the Administrative Trademark Judges while the opinion was made by Judge Kuhlke ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185," 2018).In the case, the petitioners seek the cancellation of six registration marks about the Pro-Football, Inc. 'REDSKINS' trademark. They include registration Numbers 0836122, 0987127, and 1085092 representing the mark THE REDSKINS. The registration Numbers 0978824 and 0986668 which represent the mark WASHINGTON REDSKINS and lastly registration Number 1606810 representing the mark REDSKINETTES ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185," 2018).Legal Issues

In the case, the petitioners argue that the trademarks that partially or fully comprised of the term REDSKINS to represent the professional football services should be canceled on the ground that they were acquired on contrary to the stipulations as per Section 2(a), 15 U.S.C. 1052(a) ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185", 2018). This section stipulates that entities would not obtain the registration of trademarks that tend to criticize any group of people therein. The petitioners state that the term REDSKINS as used by the football club was offensive to the Native Americans and hence was against this rule mentioned above.

Other than this petition, it was evident that the other six parties had filed a petition in motion to cancel the same trademark registration that comprised the REDSKINS term. This petition began in the case of Harjo v. Pro Football, Inc where Suzan Harjo together with other six Native Americans presented the petition to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board to cancel the registration of the REDSKINS trademark. In the argument, the petitioners claim that the term is disrespectful to the Native Americans as it contains outrageous matter which is against Section 2(a) of the Trademark Act ("USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185," 2018).Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction refers to the practical authority that a legal body such as the court system has to oversee the administration of justice within a particular field of responsibilities. The federal court system has a limited jurisdiction where it can only hear the cases as per the authorization of the United States Constitution. The federal district court is usually the point where all the cases relating to the federal statutes or the US constitution begin ("Introduction To The Federal Court System," 2018).

In the case above, the petition is presented before the United States District Court which has the jurisdiction to listen to the cases relating to tax, the federal government, and international trade. The petition above relates to claims against the federal statute which is the Trademark Act as stipulated in the United States Constitution. The Court has the subject matter jurisdiction to listen to the case as per the 15U.S.C. 1071(b)(1), 28 U.S.C. 1331, and 28 U.S.C. 1338

Legal Analysis

Upon evaluating the claims and the available evidence, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the District Court had applied a wrong procedure in evaluating the laches. Therefore, the United States Patent and Trademark Office canceled the registration of the REDSKINS trademark. The ruling was made on the ground that the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board stated that both the name and the logo of the Pro-Football, Inc. are disparaging (Shapira, 2018).

Business Action Plan

The above ruling has significant effect on the operation efficiency of the Washington Redskins football team. The decision weakens the team's legal protection against any infringement that may arise. Also, it hinders the team from blocking any counterfeit products from entering the country. For this reason, the team needs to adopt the following business action plan as a way to avoid future litigations that may damage the reputation of the football club ("Creating an action plan for your business strategy," 2018).

Involving the Team

Dan Snyder, who is the owner of the football club, should involve the team members in determining the strategies that can help in avoiding future litigation. Other than making the decision solely, Snyder should integrate the views of each of the members.

Establishing Alternative Actions

While involving the team members, it is essential to provide a list of alternative strategies that can be relevant in solving the problem at hand. In this case, it may involve changing the trademark to a more suitable one that conforms to the rules and regulations as stipulated by the Trademark Act.

Setting the Timeline

It is also essential to establish the timeline upon which the team will accomplish the best alternative action. In case, they can state that it will take approximately two months to identify the most suitable trademark that meets the statutory regulations ("Creating an action plan for your business strategy," 2018).

Resource Allocation

The team should then assign duties and responsibilities to each of the members to meet the requirements and the set timeline.

Establishing the Measurement and Follow-up Procedures

After allocating the roles, it is essential to state the strategies that will help in evaluating the progress. In the case, the most significant measure is to evaluate the degree of future litigation.

Communicating the Action Plan

After developing the plan, it is vital to ensure all the stakeholders are aware of the action plan. The management should clearly explain the roles of each of the members and the expected impact the plan has to the general efficiency of the team.

Ensure the Plan is Effective and Efficient

After establishing the plan, the team should ensure that they stick to the procedures set on the plan to ensure that it continues to operate effectively and efficiently ("Creating an action plan for your business strategy," 2018).

References

Creating an action plan for your business strategy. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.bdc.ca/en/articles-tools/business-strategy-planning/define-strategy/pages/7-steps-create-action-plan-business-strategy.aspx

Introduction To The Federal Court System. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.justice.gov/usao/justice-101/federal-courts

Shapira, I. (2018). Native Americans seek dismissal of Redskins lawsuit against them in trademark case. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/native-americans-seek-dismissal-of-redskins-lawsuit-in-trademark-case/2014/09/22/fc9fc362-418e-11e4-b437-1a7368204804_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.c3badf0056f6

USPTO TTABVUE. Proceeding Number 92046185. (2018). Retrieved from http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?pno=92046185&pty=CAN&eno=199