Beware of Official Looking Trademark Communications

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently issued a notice to trademark owners advising them of the proliferation of unsolicited communications from companies requesting fees for trademark related services, such as monitoring and document filing. In its notice, the USPTO advises that trademark owners can be assured that such solicitations are not from the USPTO because the USPTO does not provide any such services.

Often times these communications look very official and have specific information regarding the recipient's trademark, such as the name of the mark and the trademark registration number (this is public information available on the USPTO Web site). To further confuse recipients, a number of these companies have adopted very official sounding names, so that recipients will think that the company is a government entity. For example, some nefarious company names include the United States Trademark Maintenance Service and the United States Trademark Center.

Ice Miller has received numerous calls and e-mails from clients that have received such unsolicited communications. Typically, these notices arrive shortly after a trademark application has been filed, or around the time that trademark registration renewal or maintenance fees are due.

As a general rule, if you receive an unsolicited communication that requests payment for trademark-related services, it is likely that the communication is a solicitation and could be a scam. Also, if trademark counsel assisted you with the filing of your trademark application, you should not be receiving any mail from the USPTO; rather, all communications from the USPTO should be sent directly to your trademark counsel. Accordingly, if counsel assisted you with the filing of your trademark application, you should be extra-skeptical of any communications you receive regarding your trademark applications or registrations from anyone other you’re your trademark counsel (especially if the communication requests payment).

If you receive unsolicited communication about a trademark application or registration and have questions about how to respond, please contact Jay Taylor or Bradley Stohry.

This publication is intended for general information purposes only and does not and is not intended to constitute legal advice.  The reader must consult with legal counsel to determine how laws or decisions discussed herein apply to the reader's specific circumstances.