US Trademark Update/Reminder – The 3-month response period goes into effect December 1, 2022
Update from Michael Antone, U.S. Registered Patent Attorney and Of Counsel at Nemphos Braue
The USPTO is currently on track to roll out the 3-month response period for office actions issued during examination of an application or post registration office actions. The new rule is part of a remaining USPTO final rules implementing the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020.
The new 3-month response period rule does include a single three-month extension of time to respond for a fee of $125, which enables an applicant/registrant to take up to 6 months to respond to office actions as with the current practice. However, unlike the current practice, if an applicant/registrant does not file a response to the office action or an extension of time to respond request within the first three months, the application will be abandoned, or the registration will be cancelled or will expire.
Current revival practice will be applicable to correct inadvertent abandonment, cancellation, or expiration for failure to respond and request an extension as there will probably be an uptick in inadvertent abandonments, cancellations, or expirations following the implementation.
If you have any questions about the new trademark rules or any other legal matters, contact me or any of the Maryland attorneys at Nemphos Braue.
