[Conference Presentation] Law and Policy | Professor’s Panel—Trademark Turf Wars: When the Trademark Office’s Authority Ends and the Federal Court’s Authority Begins

Document Type

Presentation

Publication Date

5-19-2025

Conference / Event Title

International Trademark Association 2025 Annual Meeting

Conference / Event Location

San Diego, CA

Hosting Organization

International Trademark Association

Abstract

PANEL OVERVIEW:

In 2024, a Ninth Circuit decision redefined how far federal courts can go in determining “the right to register”—threatening to upend long-standing boundaries between the USPTO’s examination function, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, and Article III courts. Can courts now intervene in the Trademark Office’s examination midstream and become de facto forum-shopped examiners? Can opposers skip the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board when objecting to intent-to-use applications? Join the INTA Academic Committee’s annual blockbuster Professors Panel to find out!

This powerhouse panel of trademark law professors will tackle these watershed questions with clarity, candor, and a touch of provocation. After outlining the stakes and precedents, panelists will take on assigned roles to explore how far the Ninth Circuit’s logic might reach, using thought-provoking hypotheticals to test the fault lines of administrative and judicial authority. Whether you’re an examiner, litigator, trademark prosecutor, in-house counsel, or scholar, you’ll leave with a clearer view of who can and should decide the right to register—and what that means for trademark applicants and trademark application objectors.

Conference URL

https://www.inta.org/2025-annual-meeting/2025-annual-meeting-program/

Link to Full Text

Share

COinS