WARNING: Misleading Trademark Notices
by Michelle Bomberger | October 7, 2014Blog written by Lauren Burgon, Equinox Business Law Group
Increasingly over the past few months, Equinox has heard from clients regarding notices clients have received that appear to be official notices from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
These official-looking notices often appear to be bills, and are usually in amounts similar to the actual amounts that the USPTO charges for filing fees. These notices come from companies with names such as Trademark and Patent Office, Trademark Compliance Center, United States Trademark Registration Office, and Patent & Trademark Agency.
Please be aware that if you have engaged Equinox to handle a trademark for you, all official communications from the USPTO are sent to Equinox as Correspondent/Attorney of Record. You should not hear from the USPTO directly, and if you receive a mailing or notice that seems to be an official notice regarding your trademark, it is likely from one of these companies seeking to mislead you into believing you are required to pay additional fees.
If you have filed your own trademark application, be aware that official communications from the USPTO come only from the “United States Patent and Trademark Office” in Alexandria, VA, or from the domain “@uspto.gov.”
Before you pay any fee purporting to be related to your trademark, please contact Lauren Burgon at Equinox to make sure you aren’t being misled.
To see some examples of these misleading notices, you can go to the USPTO site. They have provided links to over 25 examples of these misleading notices.