Trademark Specimen – Requirements and Tips

Trademark registrations require the applicant to demonstrate use of the proposed mark by showing a trademark specimen. A specimen is “a label, tag, or container for the goods, or a display associated with the goods. The Office may accept another document related to the goods or the sale of the goods when it is not possible to place the mark on the goods or packaging for the goods.”

We received a great tip from a reader who filed his own trademark, and used letterhead as a trademark specimen. Mind you, the applicant originally received a comment letter claiming that the specimen was inadequate. The following letter sorted that out:

TRADEMARK LAW OFFICE 11
SERIAL NUMBER: 75/881886
MARK: IDEUM & DESIGN

David D. Davis
801 Claire Street 
Fairfax, California  94107
415.555.5555  Fax:877.555.5555

November 21, 2000

Assistant Commissioner for Trademarks
2900 Crystal Drive
Arlington, VA 22202-3513

To Whom It May Concern:

      What follows is my response to Office Action No. 01, dated 6/7/00.

 1. The Specimens Presented With the Application Are Adequate.

 The Action states that “[t]he specimen is unacceptable as evidence of actual service mark use because it appears to be letterhead.”

      The TMEP, Section 1301.04 states:

 “Letterhead stationery or business cards bearing the mark may be accepted if the services are clearly indicated thereon. [emphasis added]. For instance, letterhead that contains the mark and the additional phrase “Leather Tanners to the Nation for Half a Century,” or even a term such as “Real Estate Brokers,” may be accepted as support for leather tanning services or real estate brokerage services, respectively.”

The letterhead submitted by applicant shows the mark as submitted, and underneath appear the words “Designers and Developers of Internet and Web Content”. The applicant seeks registration for “Computer Services, namely designing and implementing web sites for others’.

The applicant’s specimen, while it is letterhead, falls well within the dictates of 1301.04. Applicant’s specimen clearly indicates the services offered, and such services closely mirror the services for which he seeks registration.

We therefore request that the examiner’s objection be reconsidered, and we request that the application be submitted for publication.

Because we are not submitting a substitute specimen with this response, we are not submitting a declaration in support of substitute specimen.

Yours very truly,

David D. Davis

I hereby certify that this correspondence is being deposited with the U.S. Postal Service with sufficient postage as first class mail in an envelope addressed to:

Assistant Commissioner for Trademarks
2900 Crystal Drive
Arlington, VA 22202-3513

Date:__________
____________________________
David D. Davis

Michael Spadaccini

Michael Spadaccini is the author of 8 books on self-help legal matters such as, Ultimate LLC Compliance Guide: Covers All 50 States (Ultimate Series), Ultimate Book of Forming Corps, LLCs, Partnerships & Sole Proprietorships, and Ultimate Guide to Forming an LLC in Any State, Second Edition (Ultimate Series).

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