TRADEMARK STATUS GLOSSARY - by Trademarks On Call®
Trademark owners should regularly monitor the status of their trademark applications and registrations. To this end, Trademarks On Call allows you to subscribe to free automated email status alerts for all trademarks displayed on this site. Below is a list of some of the more common trademark statuses and their meanings - check back as additional trademark status information is added.
ABANDONED - AFTER EX PARTE APPEAL
A trademark application has been abandoned for registration after the ex-parte appeal is overturned.
ABANDONED - AFTER INTER-PARTES DECISION
A trademark application has been abandoned.
ABANDONED - AFTER PETITION DECISION
A trademark application has been abandoned upon failure of a petition.
ABANDONED - AFTER PUBLICATION
A trademark application has been abandoned upon the failiure to file an Amendment to Allege Use or a Statement of Use
ABANDONED - DEFECTIVE DIVIDED APPLICATION
A trademark application has been abandoned after an attempt to divide an application was found to be defective.
ABANDONED - DEFECTIVE STATEMENT OF USE
A trademark application has been abandoned after the filed Proof of Use was found to be insufficient.
ABANDONED - EXPRESS
A trademark application has been abandoned upon the written request of the applicant or the applicant's attorney.
ABANDONED - FAILURE TO RESPOND OR LATE RESPONSE
A trademark application has been abandoned due to the failure to respond to an Office Action issued by the Trademark Office prior to the deadline. An application may be revived within 2 months of the mailing date of the Notice of Abandonment, providing the abandonment was unintentional. If you are unfamiliar with this status situation, you may want to consult with a licensed trademark attorney.
ABANDONED - INCOMPLETE RESPONSE
A trademark application has been abandoned because a response that was incomplete was filed in response to an Office Action issued by the Trademark Office.
ABANDONED - NO STATEMENT OF USE FILED
A trademark application has been abandoned due to the failure to file a Statement of Use or request an Extension of Time. An application may be revived within 2 months of the mailing date of the Notice of Abandonment, provided the abandonment was unintentional. If you are unfamiliar with this status situation, you may want to consult with a licensed trademark attorney.
ABANDONED PETITION TO REVIVE-DENIED
A request to revive an abandoned trademark application has been abandoned by the Trademark Office.
ACTION CONTINUING FINAL COUNTED - NOT MAILED
The Trademark Office has issued a final refusal in connection with your trademark application and is in the process of sending it to you. Although an applicant typically has 6 months from the date of a final office action to respond, you should always review an office action to determine the correct deadline. If you are unfamiliar with such deadlines or how to respond to a final office action, you may want to consult with a licensed trademark attorney.
AMENDMENT AFTER PUBLICATION
The Trademark Office has received a request for an amendment of a published application and is in the process of reviewing it.
APPEAL RECEIVED AT TTAB
A trademark application is pending an appeal to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.
APPLICATION RETURNED TO EXAMINER FOR FURTHER REVIEW
A Notice of Allowance previously issued for a trademark application is being withdrawn, after a supervising examining attorney determined that there are possible issues with the trademark application. The trademark application will be referred back to the examining attorney for further review. Typically the examining attorney will issue another office action setting forth what new issues with the trademark application have been uncovered.
APPLICATION UNDER REVIEW
A trademark application has been assigned to an examining attorney at the Trademark Office and the application is being reviewed for any issues.
APPROVED FOR PUBLICATION
The Trademark Office has reviewed a trademark application and considers the application acceptable for publication. The trademark application will be published in the Official Gazette for 30 days. During the 30 day publication period, any party that believes it may be damaged by the registration of the trademark in the application, may file an opposition to the application or request an extension of time to file an opposition. No action is required by applicant at this time, unless a party actually files an opposition to the application.
BACKFILE APPLICATION ADDED TO DATA BASE - STATUS NOT RECORDED
A trademark application has been refiled with the Trademark Office and is being further reviewed.
CANCELLATION DISMISSED
A proceeding to cancel a trademark registration has been dismissed.
CANCELLATION PENDING
A proceeding to cancel a trademark registration is pending.
CANCELLATION TERMINATED - SEE TTAB RECORDS
A proceeding to cancel a trademark registration has ended.
FINAL REFUSAL COUNTED - NOT MAILED
The Trademark Office has issued a final refusal in connection with a trademark application and is in the process of sending a final Office action to the applicant or the applicant's attorney. The final office action will set forth any problems with the application that must be addressed as well as the deadline for responding to the non-final office action.
FINAL REFUSAL - MAILED
The Trademark Office has issued a final refusal in connection with a trademark application and has sent a final office action to the applicant or the applicant's attorney. The Trademark Office typically sends final office actions via email. The final office action will set forth any problems with the application that must be addressed as well as the deadline for responding to the non-final office action.
NEW APPLICATION - RECORD INITIALIZED NOT ASSIGNED TO EXAMINER
A trademark application was recently filed with the Trademark Office but has not yet been assigned to an examining attorney for examination. It typically takes 3+ months from the date of filing for a new application to be assigned to an examining attorney. Once assigned, the application is reviewed for any problems that may prevent an application from proceeding towards allowance and/or registration.
NEW APPLICATION - ASSIGNED TO EXAMINER
A trademark application has been assigned to an examining attorney at the Trademark Office. The examining attorney will review the application for any problems that may prevent an application from proceeding towards allowance and/or registration.
NON-FINAL ACTION COUNTED - NOT MAILED
The Trademark Office has issued a refusal in connection with a trademark application and is in the process of sending a non-final office action to the applicant or the applicant's attorney. The non-final office action will set forth any problems with the application that must be addressed as well as the deadline for responding to the non-final office action.
NON-FINAL ACTION - MAILED
The Trademark Office has issued a refusal in connection with a trademark application and has sent a non-final office action to the applicant or the applicant's attorney. The Trademark Office typically sends non-final office actions via email. The non-final office action will set forth any problems with the application that must be addressed as well as the deadline for responding to the non-final office action.
NOTICE OF ALLOWANCE - ISSUED
A trademark application has successfully passed the Trademark Office's examination process as well as the 30-day publication/opposition period. At this point, the application is ready to register but requires the filing of an acceptable Statement of Use. A Statement of Use is an additional filing with the Trademark Office that includes proof that an applicant is actually using a trademark in commerce. Although an applicant typically has 6 months from the date of a Notice of Allowance to file a Statement of Use or request an Extension of Time, the Notice of Allowance should always be reviewed to determine the correct deadline. If you are unfamiliar with such deadlines or how to file a Statement of Use, you may want to consult with a licensed trademark attorney. Note: a Notice of Allowance is issued only for trademark applications that were initially filed as intent-to-use applications.
PRIORITY ACTION COUNTED NOT MAILED
The Trademark Office has issued a priority office action in connection with a trademark application and is in the process of sending the office action to the applicant or the applicant's attorney. The priority office action will set forth any problems with the trademark application that must be addressed as well as the deadline for responding to the priority office action.
PUBLICATION/ISSUE REVIEW COMPLETE
The Trademark Office has completed its examination of a trademark application. The trademark application will now be published in the Official Gazette for 30 days (during this publication period third-parties are given the opportunity to object to registration of the application), or the application will register if registration on the Supplemental Register was sought.
PUBLISHED FOR OPPOSITION
A trademark application has been published in the Official Gazette. The trademark application will be published for 30 days during which any third party that believes it may be damaged by registration of the application may either: (1) file an opposition to the application, or (2) request an extension of time to file an opposition. If neither an opposition or an extension of time are filed within the 30 days, the trademark application will either register (for in-use applications) or the Trademark Office will issue a Notice of Allowance (for intent-to-use applications).
REGISTERED
The Trademark Office has completed its review and examination of a trademark application. The trademark application is now officially registered. The owner of the trademark may now use the ® symbol in connection with the registered mark. Going forward, the Trademark Office has set forth periodic renewal deadlines (5-year and 10-year renewals) and fees that must be satisfied in order to maintain a trademark registration.
REGISTERED AND RENEWED
A trademark that was previously registered has now also fulfilled the renewal requirements that are required to maintain the trademark registration.
REGISTRATION CANCELLED
A trademark registration has been cancelled by the Trademark Office.
REQUEST FOR EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE OPPOSITION
A request for an extension of time to file an opposition to a trademark application has been filed with the Trademark Office.
RESPONSE AFTER FINAL REJECTION - ENTERED
A response to a final office action has been received by the Trademark Office. If the response resolves all issues set forth in the final office action, the examining attorney can approve the trademark application. If the response does not resolve all issues, the examining attorney can maintain the final refusal. No action is required while the examining attorney is reviewing the response to a final office action.
RESPONSE AFTER NON-FINAL ACTION - ENTERED
A response to a non-final office action has been received by the Trademark Office. If the response resolves all issues set forth in the non-final office action, the examining attorney can approve the trademark application. If the response does not resolve all issues, the examining attorney can maintain the non-final refusal. No action is required while the examining attorney is reviewing the response to a non-final office action.
REVIVED - AWAITING FURTHER ACTION
The Trademark Office has received and accepted a request to revive an abandoned trademark application.
STATEMENT OF USE - FILED
The Trademark Office has received a Statement of Use that was filed as proof that the trademark is actually being used in commerce. If the Statement of Use is sufficient and accepted, the Trademark Office should proceed to register the trademark application.
STATEMENT OF USE - TO EXAMINER
The Examining Attorney has received a Statement of Use that was filed as proof that the trademark is actually being used in commerce. The Examining Attorney will review the Statement of Use to determine whether it is acceptable as proof of use in commerce. If the Examining Attorney finds the Statement of Use to be acceptable, the Trademark Office should proceed to register the trademark application.
STATEMENT OF USE ACCEPTED, APPROVED FOR REGISTRATION
The Examining Attorney has approved a Statement of Use that was filed as proof that the trademark is actually being used in commerce. The trademark application has been approved for registration and the Trademark Office should proceed to register the trademark application.
STATEMENT OF USE, REGISTRATION REVIEW COMPLETE
The Trademark Office has completed its examination of a trademark application including the Statement of Use that was filed as proof the trademark is actually being used in commerce. The Trademark Office should proceed to register the trademark application.
SUSPENSION INQUIRY - MAILED
A trademark application has been suspended while the Trademark Office determines whether a previously filed and potentially similar trademark is registrable. If further action is required, the Trademark Office will contact the applicant or the applicant's attorney listed for the trademark application.
SUSPENSION LETTER COUNTED - NOT MAILED
A trademark application has been suspended while the Trademark Office determines whether a previously filed and potentially similar trademark is registrable. If further action is required, the Trademark Office will contact the applicant or the applicant's attorney listed for the trademark application.
Disclaimer: Trademarks On Call is not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or a law firm. Trademarks On Call does not provide legal advice. The information provided on this website is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
