1. The United States is a country that practices case law (that is, unwritten law), so court cases have played a more important role in dealing with trademark disputes and the development of American trademark law.

2. The United States adopts the protection principle of trademark before use. The ownership of trademarks in the United States usually depends on the use of trademarks in the United States. Generally speaking, even if the first user has never registered his trademark in the United States or the second user has registered the same or similar trademark first, the person who actually uses a trademark first has the right to the person who uses it later. Of course, from the perspective of trademark protection, the registration of user trademarks in the US Federal Patent and Trademark Office cannot be ignored.

According to the currently applicable trademark registration regulations in the United States, commodity trademarks, service trademarks, collective trademarks and certification trademarks can all be registered in the United States.

4. The United States adopts the international classification of goods and services. Trademark registration is divided into main book and auxiliary book.

5. The international organizations and conventions to which the United States has acceded include the World Intellectual Property Organization, the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Nice Agreement on the International Classification of Trademark Registrars and Services and the Protocol to the Madrid Agreement.

The main difference between American trademark system and other countries in the world is that the exclusive right of American trademark is based on the principle of first use.

Second, the information required for American trademark application

1. If a legal person applies, 1 copy of business license or valid registration certificate shall be attached and stamped with the official seal; Apply as a natural person, with personal identity certificate 1 copy;

2. Detailed information of the applicant (in Chinese and English), including name, nature, nationality, detailed address, postal code and contact information;

3. Standard samples of electronic trademarks;

4. Commodity name and category;

5. The applicant shall submit a statement of sincere use of the trademark, stating on which products or services the trademark will be used (intended to be used);

6. The applicant provides a statement that the trademark is actually used in the business (actual use);

7. Signed power of attorney.

Three. Application and registration of American trademarks

1. Qualifications of the applicant:

(1) Anyone who has used a trademark in American business can apply for trademark registration.

(2) According to the Trademark Amendment Act of 1988, people who sincerely intend to use trademarks in American businesses can also apply for trademark registration.

(3) If the trademark of a national of a member country of the Paris Convention has been registered in his own country, those who have used it in other countries or intend to use it according to the revised law of 1988 may apply for trademark registration. Foreign applicants must appoint agents in the United States to handle trademark matters.

2. Application process (smooth):

(1) Formal review: the legality review of the submitted application documents, trademark patterns, power of attorney and other documents after the application is submitted; If it meets the requirements, the application date and application number shall be granted.

(2) substantive examination: whether a trademark can be registered according to law, whether it is the same as or similar to a previously registered trademark, and whether it violates the prohibition clause of the Trademark Law. For trademarks that fail the substantive examination, the examiner will notify the applicant in writing and inform the reasons for rejection. The applicant can submit the examination opinions within the time limit from the date of receiving the notice of rejection, otherwise the application will be regarded as abandoned, and the application date and application number will not be retained.

(3) Announcement: After examination, the examiner thinks that the trademark application is acceptable, and it will be announced in the official trademark announcement of the United States. The objection period is 1 month from the date of announcement.

(4) Submission of use declaration: After the above procedures, the Trademark Patent Office will issue a license notice, which is not a registration certificate; Within 6 months after the "License Notice" is issued, the applicant must provide a statement of the true use of the trademark in business, or apply to keep the trademark.

(5) Registration approval: The Trademark Patent Office will re-examine it after receiving the true use statement. If it is decided to accept the statement of true use after examination, a registration certificate shall be issued. The whole application process is smooth (if there are no rejections, objections, etc.). It will take about 20-24 months.

3. Validity: 65,438+00 years from the date of registration. If it is necessary to continue to use it after the expiration of the registration period, an application for renewal of registration shall be filed six months before the expiration of the registration period. Each renewal registration is valid for 65,438+00 years. During the fifth and sixth years after the registration of a trademark, that is, between the ninth year and the 10 year, the trademark registration must submit an affidavit signed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, swearing that the registered trademark has been used on all trademarks and/or services approved by the registration, or on some goods and/or services approved within five years after the registration of the trademark. Or show that there is no justifiable reason for using the registered trademark: if the legal sales of products are temporarily suspended due to government regulations, or the production of products is temporarily suspended due to disasters such as fires, rather than the registrant intentionally giving up the registered trademark, the registration may be maintained valid or partially valid.

Four, the applicant can apply for registration in the United States according to the following four conditions:

1, actual use of trademark (trademark description)

The trademark applied for registration must have been actually used in American business activities. When applying, you can only apply for the goods or services that have actually used the trademark; According to the application made on this basis, after examination, USPTO will make an announcement in about 12 months, and there will be no objection within 30 days. USPTO will issue a registration certificate in 12 weeks after the announcement.

2. Intention to use the trademark

A) The trademark applied for registration must be intended for use in the United States. At the time of application, the applicant shall submit a statement of sincere use of the trademark and explain on which products or services the trademark will be used.

B) After review, announcement and objection procedures, USPTO will issue a "license notice" instead of a registration certificate. (The time is about 12 months)

C) Within six months after issuing the license notice, the applicant must provide a statement of true use of the trademark in business or seek an extension; USPTO can give the applicant another six months according to the extension application, so that the applicant can submit the statement of real use.

D) If the application is justified, you can apply for an extension of 6 months; If the reason is established, the extension period of reapplication can be up to 24 months. In this way, the applicant can make a statement of real use to USPTO within 36 months from the date of obtaining the "License Notice". Therefore, it takes about four years for the applicant to put the relevant trademark into real commercial use.

E)USPTO will review it again after receiving the statement of real use. If it is decided to accept the true use statement after examination, a registration certificate will be issued. The exclusive right to use a trademark shall be counted from the date of application.

3. China registered trademark

If the trademark applied for registration has been registered in China, it can be registered in the United States on this basis, and the design and service scope of the trademark applied for in the United States must be the same as that registered in China. At the time of application, a certified copy of the domestic trademark registration certificate and a sworn English translation must be provided. USPTO will issue a trademark registration certificate after examination and confirmation that there is no objection, and the time is generally 15 months.

4. Based on domestic application.

Applicants in China can file an application based on domestic application priority with the United States within 6 months from the domestic application date according to the provisions of the Paris Convention, and the domestic application date is the United States application date. Select this basis, the trademark is successfully registered in China, and the corresponding registration certificate is submitted to USPTO before the registration certificate can be issued; If it fails to register successfully in China, the trademark will be revoked. Therefore, choosing this foundation is risky and rarely used in practice.

USPTO trademark registration is valid for ten years and can be renewed after ten years, but the applicant needs to provide an affidavit to show that the application will continue to exist in the fifth to sixth years; In the future, the trademark registrant shall also resubmit the trademark use statement every 10 years after the trademark registration, with a grace period of 6 months. After the trademark was registered with USPTO, it has never been used discontinuously for five years, and there is no dispute or controversy that cannot be established. Then the trademark right is regarded as permanently established and the trademark becomes an "uncontroversial trademark". Only when the trademark is successfully registered in USPTO can the R ring mark be used. If the trademark owner wants to sue others for infringement in the future, then the act of not indicating the ownership of the trademark on the trademark will become an unfavorable factor for the trademark owner.