Trademark Question

[ocman13]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA
Hi. I have started a skincare cosmetics company and need help with a trademark question. Let’s call my company ABC Cosmetics (not real name). I have filed LLC paperwork in the state of California for ABC Cosmetics. The first product sold by ABC Cosmetics will be called Renew Me Now. What steps do I need to take to protect the Renew Me Now name? I believe I need to file a trademark at the federal level. But do I need to do anything else at the federal level? Anything at the state level? Do I need to file a Fictitious Business Name with the county or LLC paperwork with the state? I don't think so because the product is being sold by ABC Cosmetics. But I'm not sure and need some advice. Thanks for the help.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA
Hi. I have started a skincare cosmetics company and need help with a trademark question. Let�s call my company ABC Cosmetics (not real name). I have filed LLC paperwork in the state of California for ABC Cosmetics. The first product sold by ABC Cosmetics will be called Renew Me Now. What steps do I need to take to protect the Renew Me Now name? I believe I need to file a trademark at the federal level. But do I need to do anything else at the federal level? Anything at the state level? Do I need to file a Fictitious Business Name with the county or LLC paperwork with the state? I don't think so because the product is being sold by ABC Cosmetics. But I'm not sure and need some advice. Thanks for the help.

You gain trademark rights in your ABC Cosmetics business name, and your "Renew Me Now" product name by using them in commerce and not through the registration of your marks, either with your state or federally. In the US, registration is not necessary for trademark protection (although registration provides you with additional benefits should your marks be infringed).

You cannot register any mark until it has been used in the marketplace. If you are looking for federal protection for your marks (both your business name and your product names) and are intending to use either or both within six months from date of filing (although extensions are available), you can file an Intent to Use application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Once you use the marks, then you can proceed with registration upon filing an Allegation of Use for the Intent-to-Use application.

What an Intent to Use application will do is allow you to use the application's filing date as the priority date in case a trademark conflict arises and someone else uses or attempts to use the name. The Intent to Use application essentially reserves the name for you while you work to get your business up and running and get your product ready for sale to the public.

You can visit the USPTO website - http://www.uspto.gov - for more information on trademark registration, and you might be smart to sit down with a business law professional in your area to make sure the names you are intending to use are not already in use and protected, and to offer you advice and direction on protecting your marks if there is no conflict that exists with your use of your selected names.

Good luck.

 

[Zigner]

If "Renew me Now" is the actual product name you wish to use, then I expect you may run in to some opposition from the "Renew" folks...

ETA: I do understand that you may have meant it as an example only

 

[quincy]

If "Renew me Now" is the actual product name you wish to use, then I expect you may run in to some opposition from the "Renew" folks...

ETA: I do understand that you may have meant it as an example only

I took it that both of the names used by ocman13 were for example purposes only but, yes, I too noticed that the "Renew" name (if NOT an example only) would be problematic.

A trademark search should be conducted prior to using a name. The search should not only be of marks that have been registered federally and marks registered in different states, but also of marks that are being used that have not been registered.

In the US, ownership of a mark is generally determined by who was the "first to use" the mark and not who was the "first to register" (although it is a bit more complicated than this). Many other countries use "first to register" when deciding who owns a mark.