In re Oppedahl & Larson LLP

373 F.3d 1171 (2004)

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In re Oppedahl & Larson LLP

United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
373 F.3d 1171 (2004)

Facts

Oppedahl & Larson LLP (Oppedahl) (plaintiff) filed an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to register the mark “patents.com” for trademark protection. Oppedahl argued that its website was used to sell computer software that kept track of the status of patent records. The USPTO denied Oppedahl’s application, because it found the mark to be merely descriptive of the product. Oppedahl appealed to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (Board), and the Board affirmed the USPTO’s decision. The Board found that adding “.com” to a descriptive term did not make the term eligible for trademark protection. Oppedahl then appealed the Board’s decision.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Rader, J.)

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