Offc Action Outgoing

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

 

 

 

OFFICE ACTION:

 

RESPONSE TIME LIMIT:  TO AVOID ABANDONMENT, THE OFFICE MUST RECEIVE A PROPER RESPONSE TO THIS OFFICE ACTION WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF THE MAILING OR E-MAILING DATE. 

 

MAILING/E-MAILING DATE INFORMATION:  If the mailing or e-mailing date of this Office action does not appear above, this information can be obtained by visiting the USPTO website at http://tarr.gov.uspto.report/, inserting the application serial number, and viewing the prosecution history for the mailing date of the most recently issued Office communication.

 

Serial Number  76/667162

 

The assigned trademark examining attorney has reviewed the referenced application and has determined the following:

 

 

 

 

 

Results of Search for Similar Registered or Pending Marks:

 

The Office records have been searched and no similar registered or pending mark has been found that would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d).  TMEP §704.02.

 

Applicant Must Amend Classification of Goods:

 

Applicant’s “rawhide chews for dogs” are classified incorrectly.  Applicant must amend the application to classify the goods in International Class 018.  37 C.F.R. §§2.32(a)(7) and 2.85; TMEP §§1401.02(a) and 1401.03(b).

 

Accordingly, if applicant prosecutes this application as a combined, or multiple-class application, i.e., for both International Classes 018 and 031, then applicant must comply with each of the requirements below for those goods and/or services based on actual use in commerce under Trademark Act Section 1(a):

 

(1) Applicant must list the goods/services by international class with the classes listed in ascending numerical order. 

 

(2) Applicant must submit a filing fee for each international class of goods and/or services not covered by the fee already paid, as well as the $100 fee per class for the amendment to allege use (current fee information should be confirmed at http://www.uspto.gov); and

 

(3) For each additional class, applicant must submit:

 

(a) dates of first use of the mark anywhere and dates of first use of the mark in commerce, or a statement that the dates of use in the initial application apply to that class; the dates of use both anywhere and in commerce must be at least as early as the filing date of the amendment to allege use;

 

(b) one specimen showing use of the mark for each class of goods and/or services; the specimen having been in use in commerce prior to the filing of the amendment to allege use;

 

(c) a statement that “the mark was in use in commerce prior to the filing of the amendment to allege use, as evidenced by the attached specimen” and specifying the goods and/or services on which applicant is now using the mark in commerce; and

 

(d) verification of the statements in 3(a) and 3(c) in an affidavit or a signed declaration under 37 C.F.R. §2.20.  (NOTE:  Verification is not required where (1) the dates of use for the added class are stated to be the same as the dates of use specified in the initial application, or (2) the original specimens are acceptable for the added class.)

 

37 C.F.R. §§2.6, 2.34(a), 2.59, 2.71(c), 2.76(b), and 2.86(a); TMEP §§810, 904.09, 1403.01 and 1403.02(c).

 

Please note that the specimen of record are acceptable for class(es) 031 only.

 

Applicant Must Submitted Signed Affidavit or Declaration:

 

The application was not signed and verified, which are application requirements.  15 U.S.C. §§1051(a)-(b), 1126(d)-(e), 1141f(a); 37 C.F.R. §§2.33-2.34.  Therefore, applicant must submit, in a signed affidavit or declaration under 37 C.F.R. §2.20, the following statement:  “The mark is in use in commerce and was in use in commerce on or in connection with the goods and/or services listed in the application as of the application filing date, and the facts set forth in the application are true and correct.”  TMEP §804.02.

 

If applicant responds to this Office action via TEAS, applicant may satisfy this requirement by adding the required statement (specified immediately above) to the TEAS response form, checking the box for a “signed declaration,” and properly signing the form by either (1) choosing an electronic signature consisting of any combination of letters, numbers, spaces and/or punctuation marks, preceded and followed by the forward slash (/) symbol (e.g., /johndoe/), and entering this in the signature block on the response form, or (2) attaching a JPG or PDF image of a declaration under 37 C.F.R. §2.20 (see declaration paragraph below) together with a pen-and-ink signature.  37 C.F.R. §2.193(c)(1)(iii); TMEP §804.05. 

 

If applicant responds to this Office action on paper, via regular mail, applicant may satisfy this requirement by providing the following declaration at the end of the response, properly signed and dated:

 

The undersigned, being hereby warned that willful false statements and the like so made are punishable by fine or imprisonment, or both, under 18 U.S.C. 1001, and that such willful false statements and the like may jeopardize the validity of the application or any resulting registration, declares that he/she is properly authorized to execute this application on behalf of the applicant; he/she believes the applicant to be the owner of the trademark/service mark sought to be registered; that the mark is in use in commerce and was in use in commerce on or in connection with the goods or services listed in the application as of the application filing date; that the facts set forth in the application are true and correct; that to the best of his/her knowledge and belief no other person, firm, corporation, or association has the right to use the mark in commerce, either in the identical form thereof or in such near resemblance thereto as to be likely, when used on or in connection with the goods/services of such other person, to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive; and that all statements made of his/her own knowledge are true and all statements made on information and belief are believed to be true.

 

_____________________________

(Signature)

 

_____________________________

(Print or Type Name and Position)

 

_____________________________

(Date)

 

/Rebeccah Gan/

Rebeccah Gan

United States Patent and Trademark Office

Law Office 103

Phone: (571) 272-5870

Fax: (571) 273-9103

 

HOW TO RESPOND TO THIS OFFICE ACTION:

 

·        ONLINE RESPONSE:  You may respond using the Office’s Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) Response to Office action form available on our website at http://www.gov.uspto.report/teas/index.html.  If the Office action issued via e-mail, you must wait 72 hours after receipt of the Office action to respond via TEAS.  NOTE:  Do not respond by e-mail.  THE USPTO WILL NOT ACCEPT AN E-MAILED RESPONSE.

·        REGULAR MAIL RESPONSE:  To respond by regular mail, your response should be sent to the mailing return address above, and include the serial number, law office number, and examining attorney’s name.  NOTE:  The filing date of the response will be the date of receipt in the Office, not the postmarked date.  To ensure your response is timely, use a certificate of mailing.  37 C.F.R. §2.197.

 

STATUS OF APPLICATION: To check the status of your application, visit the Office’s Trademark Applications and Registrations Retrieval (TARR) system at http://tarr.uspto.gov.

 

VIEW APPLICATION DOCUMENTS ONLINE: Documents in the electronic file for pending applications can be viewed and downloaded online at http://portal.gov.uspto.report/external/portal/tow.

 

GENERAL TRADEMARK INFORMATION: For general information about trademarks, please visit the Office’s website at http://www.gov.uspto.report/main/trademarks.htm

 

FOR INQUIRIES OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS OFFICE ACTION, PLEASE CONTACT THE ASSIGNED EXAMINING ATTORNEY SPECIFIED ABOVE.