Offc Action Outgoing

TO AVOID ABANDONMENT OF APPLICANT’S TRADEMARK APPLICATION, THE USPTO MUST RECEIVE APPLICANT’S COMPLETE RESPONSE TO THIS LETTER WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF THE ISSUE/MAILING DATE BELOW.

ISSUE/MAILING DATE:

THIS IS A FINAL ACTION.

The examining attorney has carefully reviewed the applicant’s response to the first Office action containing amendments and arguments in favor of registration. The disclaimer has been entered into the record. The Trademark Act Section 2(d) refusal is withdrawn. As to the other outstanding issues, the examining attorney has determined the following. Applicant must respond timely and completely to the issue below. 15 U.S.C. §1062(b); 37 C.F.R. §§2.62(a), 2.65(a); TMEP §§711, 718.03.

Requirement of Amended Identification Maintained

The amended identification of goods is indefinite and must be clarified because it is unclear from the current wording exactly what goods are used in conjunction with the mark. See TMEP §1402.01. In particular, “trays” must be further clarified, e.g. “trays for domestic use.” The requirement of a clarified identification of goods is maintained and made FINAL.

Based on the submitted amendment the applicant may adopt the following identification, if accurate (suggested wording appears in italicized print):

Trays for domestic purposes; bowls; flatware serving trays; household utensils, namely, graters; coasters not of paper and not being table linen; cutting boards and chopping blocks made from bamboo, acacia, Mangowood, plastic, and glass; baking sheets, pans, and mats trivets; food storage canisters sets and household containers for foods; vases; and in-cabinet organization units, namely, spice racks and lazy Susans, all having non-slip material on them or their handles to prevent slipping or to provide a good gripping surface in Class 21. TMEP Section 1402.01.

An applicant may amend an identification of goods only to clarify or limit the goods; adding to or broadening the scope of the goods is not permitted. 37 C.F.R. §2.71(a); see TMEP §§1402.06 et seq., 1402.07 et seq.

For a detailed discussion of this Office's authority and rationale for requiring a specific identification of goods or services in an application, see Skoler, Trademark Identification - Much Ado About Something?, 76 Trademark Rep. 224 (1986).

For assistance with identifying and classifying goods and services in trademark applications, please see the USPTO’s online searchable U.S. Acceptable Identification of Goods and Services Manual at http://tess2.gov.uspto.report/netahtml/tidm.html. See TMEP §1402.04.

Applicant must respond within six months of the date of issuance of this final Office action or the following goods to which the final refusal and/or requirement apply will be deleted from the application by Examiner’s Amendment: “trays.” 37 C.F.R. §2.65(a); see 15 U.S.C. §1062(b).

The application will then proceed for the following goods: “Bowls; flatware serving trays; household utensils, namely, graters; coasters not of paper and not being table linen; cutting boards and chopping blocks made from bamboo, acacia, Mangowood, plastic, and glass; baking sheets, pans, and mats trivets; food storage canisters sets and household containers for foods; vases; and in-cabinet organization units, namely, spice racks and lazy Susans, all having non-slip material on them or their handles to prevent slipping or to provide a good gripping surface.”

Applicant may respond by providing one or both of the following:

(1) A response that fully satisfies all outstanding requirements;

(2) An appeal to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, with the appeal fee of $100 per class.

37 C.F.R. §2.64(a); TMEP §714.04; see 37 C.F.R. §2.6(a)(18); TBMP ch. 1200.

In certain rare circumstances, an applicant may respond by filing a petition to the Director pursuant to 37 C.F.R. §2.63(b)(2) to review procedural issues. 37 C.F.R. §2.64(a); TMEP §714.04; see 37 C.F.R. §2.146(b); TBMP §1201.05; TMEP §1704 (explaining petitionable matters). The petition fee is $100. 37 C.F.R. §2.6(a)(15).

If applicant has questions regarding this Office action, please telephone or e-mail the assigned trademark examining attorney. All relevant e-mail communications will be placed in the official application record; however, an e-mail communication will not be accepted as a response to this Office action and will not extend the deadline for filing a proper response. See 37 C.F.R. §2.191; TMEP §§304.01-.02, 709.04-.05. Further, although the trademark examining attorney may provide additional explanation pertaining to the refusal and/or requirement in this Office action, the trademark examining attorney may not provide legal advice or statements about applicant’s rights. See TMEP §§705.02, 709.06.

/Jason F. Turner/

Jason F. Turner

Law Office 108

(571) 272-9353

jason.turner@uspto.gov

TO RESPOND TO THIS LETTER: Go to http://www.gov.uspto.report/trademarks/teas/response_forms.jsp. Please wait 48-72 hours from the issue/mailing date before using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS), to allow for necessary system updates of the application. For technical assistance with online forms, e-mail TEAS@uspto.gov. For questions about the Office action itself, please contact the assigned trademark examining attorney. E-mail communications will not be accepted as responses to Office actions; therefore, do not respond to this Office action by e-mail.

All informal e-mail communications relevant to this application will be placed in the official application record.

WHO MUST SIGN THE RESPONSE: It must be personally signed by an individual applicant or someone with legal authority to bind an applicant (i.e., a corporate officer, a general partner, all joint applicants). If an applicant is represented by an attorney, the attorney must sign the response.

PERIODICALLY CHECK THE STATUS OF THE APPLICATION: To ensure that applicant does not miss crucial deadlines or official notices, check the status of the application every three to four months using the Trademark Status and Document Retrieval (TSDR) system at http://tsdr.gov.uspto.report/. Please keep a copy of the TSDR status screen. If the status shows no change for more than six months, contact the Trademark Assistance Center by e-mail at TrademarkAssistanceCenter@uspto.gov or call 1-800-786-9199. For more information on checking status, see http://www.gov.uspto.report/trademarks/process/status/.

TO UPDATE CORRESPONDENCE/E-MAIL ADDRESS: Use the TEAS form at http://www.gov.uspto.report/trademarks/teas/correspondence.jsp.