If you own a business in Austin and you are interested in registering your trademark rights with the Unites States Patent & Trademark Office you might want to seek legal advice from an Austin Trademark Attorney. There are three primary reasons why a trademark attorney might save you time and money in the trademark process:

1) PROPERLY DRAFTED TRADEMARK APPLICATION – A properly drafted trademark application will likely result in fewer issues once an examiner at the United States Patent & Trademark Office examines the trademark application. It is important that you select the proper filing basis and the proper class(es) of goods and services. In addition, if you file for registration of a logo you will need to upload a properly formatted drawing file and ensure you accurately describe the logo being upload. Finally, each class of goods and services in the application will include a list of goods and services. If you elect to prepare your own list of goods and services you will want to ensure that you properly describe the products and services to avoid a refusal from the trademark examiner. Some of these issues can be fatal to your application and could require you to file a new trademark application to correct the issue. Others simply add time and cost to the process.

2) ADDRESSING ISSUES DURING TRADEMARK EXAMINATION – After your trademark application has been reviewed by a Trademark Examiner, the Examiner will likely issue an office action requiring clarification or correction of certain items in the trademark application. It is also possible the Trademark Examiner will issue an office action with a substantive refusal such as a Section 2(b) likelihood of confusion refusal or a Section 2(e)(1) descriptiveness refusal. These refusals are quite difficult to overcome and most often require a trained attorney to convince the Examining Attorney to change his or her position. Having a trademark attorney assist you with the trademark search process and assist you with filing your trademark application will reduce the likelihood of receiving one of these more substantive refusals.

3) EVIDENCE OF USE OF THE TRADE MARK AND TRADEMARK RENEWAL – You will need to provide evidence of use of your trademark in commerce prior to the trademark registering. This can be difficult especially with downloadable software. Also, once your trademark registers you will need to pay close attention to time to ensure you renew your trademark registration on a timely basis. Failure to renew on a timely basis will result in your trademark being abandoned. Renewal of the trademark registration will also require further evidence of use for each product and each service listed in the goods and services. A trademark attorney will not only be able to help you navigate the use requirements but an Austin Trademark Attorney will have a docketing system to track the renewal so you are sure to maintain your trademark rights for years to come.

If you are interested in learning more about how we can assist you, please contact us at austin@bltg-ip.com or call us at 512-920-1899. We are happy to provide you with a free consultation and we will help you navigate the trademark registration process if you hire one of our skilled trademark attorneys.