The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) requires all trademark applicants and owners to disclose their domicile address—whether within the United States, or elsewhere. This is known as the “domicile address requirement.” The policy was implemented in part to combat fraudulent foreign filings that use fake addresses or shell companies to hide the true owners’ identity. Providing a proper domicile address also allows the USPTO to determine whether the applicant or owner must be represented by a qualified U.S. attorney. However, requiring a domicile address can present unique issues for tr ..read more

Happy New Year! ‘Tis the season to brush up on tips for identifying whether you have received a fraudulent trademark solicitation. This article will provide an overview of recent trends that we are seeing in trademark scam solicitations and provide helpful tips to avoid becoming a victim of these sophisticated scams. Background Recently, there has been a rise in trademark scam solicitations sent from private companies targeting new trademark applicants, as well as owners of registered trademarks. These private companies are not affiliated with the U.S. government or the United States Patent an ..read more

Tech transfer and professional development take center stage in Kansas City on July 17-19, 2023. We are happy to support the 2023 Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Central Region Meeting right here in our hometown of Kansas City. Our Partners  Greg Skoch and Jaclyn Alcantara will be there and look forward to networking with colleagues and tech transfer professionals. Stop by our sponsor table or reach out on AUTM Connect networking app to connect! Reasons to Attend: Networking with more than 140 tech transfer professionals Real world insights from seasoned industry ..read more

Tech transfer and professional development take center stage in Kansas City on July 17-19, 2023. We are happy to support the 2023 Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Central Region Meeting right here in our hometown of Kansas City. Our Partners Tracy Bornman, Greg Skoch and Cheryl Burbach will be there and look forward to networking with colleagues and tech transfer professionals. Stop by our sponsor table or reach out on AUTM Connect networking app to connect! Reasons to Attend: Networking with more than 140 tech transfer professionals Real world insights from seasoned indust ..read more

On September 29, 2023, Hovey Williams is hosting our 2nd Annual Intellectual Property Bootcamp in Overland Park, Kansas for diverse undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, and law students, hoping to spark their interest in intellectual property as a potential career path (e.g., patent agent or attorney) or provide foundational tools to protect their own innovations. Jaclyn Alcantara and Dianne Smith-Misemer are facilitators. We are excited to have Molly Kocialski, USPTO’s Rocky Mountain Regional Director, as a special guest speaker this year! We are bow accepting applications. Applicants selected ..read more

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday in Jack Daniel’s Properties Inc. v. VIP Products LLC that a dog toy parodying Jack Daniel’s iconic whiskey bottle was subject to traditional trademark infringement and dilution tests. VIP Products sells a line of dog toys that poke fun at well-known beverage brands—”Mountain Drool,” “Doggie Walker,” “Pawcifico,” “Jose the Perro,” and “Heine Sniffin,” to name a few. VIP’s “Bad Spaniel Silly Squeaker” is shaped like the Jack Daniel’s bottle, and its label claims “43% poo by volume, 100% smelly” and “The Old. No. 2 on Your Tennessee Carpet.” Jack ..read more

Congratulations to our Partners, Cheryl Burbach and Crissa Cook, who appeared in Best Lawyers Women in the Law 2023 Business Edition. Both were recognized by Best Lawyers in America® for 2023 and named ‘Lawyer of the Year’ in their respective fields in Overland Park, Kansas. Best Lawyers highlights one attorney in a particular location and practice area who received the highest votes from his or her peers in a given year. A well deserved honor, thanks for making us look good! The post Cheryl Burbach and Crissa Cook Listed in Best Lawyers Women in the Law Business Edition Spring 2023 first appe ..read more

Digital pictures of quirky apes smoking and wearing sunglasses, fur coats, and military helmets have joined the federal trademark ranks, according to a recent California decision. Courts have been grappling with how current IP laws work with Web3 emerging technologies such as crypto collectibles, NFTs (non-fungible tokens), and digital artwork. Like whether these kind of digital assets even qualify as trademarks, along with their associated protections and remedies. A California federal court recently ruled that they do. Crypto creator Yuga Labs and artists Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Chen battled ..read more

We are thrilled to announce that our firm ranked #7 nationwide on the “2022 U.S. Trademark Registration Tote Board.” The list was compiled, and firms were ranked based on the number of U.S. trademark registrations obtained in 2022. This year, we helped clients obtain a colossal number of 521 trademark registrations! And with the continued growth and development of our team, we are not slowing down for 2023. The number of trademark registrations secured reflects our firm’s ability to assist clients with adding value to asset portfolios, expeditiously registering in the Amazon Brand Registry, an ..read more

We are proud to have 10 lawyers awarded in the 2023 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® and the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America. The Best Lawyers in America® recognizes only the top 5.3% of elite lawyers in the nation in their specific geographic location and practice area. Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Best Lawyers awards are compiled by exhaustive peer-review surveys in which tens of thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. Hovey Williams’ lawyers are ranked in six practice areas that include co ..read more