Obtaining a Federally Registered Trademark

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Federal law permits the registration of nearly any word or design that is not confusingly similar to an existing mark provided the mark is being used in either interstate or international commerce. A trademark cannot be, for example,  deceptive, obscene or racially derogatory.

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The filing of a trademark registration with the US Trademark Office requires providing:

1. Exact form of the Mark;

2. Identify the Mark as either a word-only mark or design mark;

3. Owner of the mark;

4. Legal status of the owner, e.g., individual, corporation or LLC including state of incorporation;

5. Address of owner;

6. A domestic representative if a non-US entity;

7. Description of Goods and Services on which the Mark will be used;

8. Date of first use of the Mark in any capacity by the owner;

9. Date of first use of the Mark in interstate or international commerce by the owner; and

10. Specimens (pictures) showing actual use of the Mark on the goods or services.