TTABVUE Online Help

Technical requirements

TTAB Vue requires Netscape v.4 or Internet Explorer v.4 and Adobe Acrobat Reader v.4 or above.

After clicking on a docket entry in a proceeding, the screen will split, with an image of that paper displayed in the left window. The windows can be resized by moving the scroll bar separating the two windows.

If Acrobat opens in a separate window, your Acrobat Reader has not been properly loaded as a plug-in for your browser. This problem usually results from installing Acrobat Reader before installing Netscape (or an upgrade of Netscape). Re-installing Adobe Acrobat Reader after installing or upgrading your browser will usually resolve the problem.

Current data displayed

TTABVUE screens reflect current TTAB data

Search options

The following search options are available in TTABVUE

All words in a document
Words in a specific field of a document
"Match" and "Starts with" options
Searching in multiple fields

All these words anywhere in record

This search looks for matching words in the following parts of a proceeding:

Proceeding number
Property number
Plaintiff or defendant name
Plaintiff or defendant property name
Plaintiff or defendant property serial number
Plaintiff or defendant property registration number

The search results will list all proceedings where the search terms are found in any of the above-listed fields. For example, a search of the term

CAT INC

will return a list of proceedings where the term 'CAT' is found in the property name field and the term 'INC' is found in the party name field.

NOTE: The default search box located on the search detail screens will search in the 'all words in a document search' field.

Contains all words search option

This search is similar to the one performed in the 'all words in a document' search. That is, the search terms are only searched in the specified fields. For example, if you search the term

CAT INC

in the party name field, the results will only return a list of proceedings where the party names contain both terms.

'Starts With' and 'Is' search options

Because TTABVUE retrieves exact match results, proceedings containing misspelled terms may not be found. The 'starts with' search option will retrieve results when you are unsure of the spelling of a search term, but you know the beginning letters or characters of a term.

For example, if you enter the search term

BIG C

in the party name field, your search results will include proceedings where one (or more) of the party's names begin with BIG C. Party names would include: Big Company, Big Computer, Inc., and Big Country Properties. However, your search results would not include proceedings where one (or more) of the party's name is One Big Company.

When searching short or one-letter/character terms in a specific field, the 'is' option may be preferable. If you are searching for a mark consisting solely of the letter

and you use the 'is' option, your results will include only proceedings where the involved marks are exactly the letter 'A'.

Searches in multiple fields

If you enter terms in more than one search field, the search results must satisfy all of the search criteria.

Returning to TTABVUE Home Page

To navigate to the home page you may use either the browser's back button or click on the TTABVUE logo.

Hyperlinks used in TTABVUE

Hyperlinks contained within search results are linked to TTAB information related to the item displayed with one exception.

Exception: Serial/Registration number hyperlinks shown on summary and proceeding pages link to the information contained in the Trademark Applications and Registration Retrieval System (TARR) that is related to the selected hyperlinked number.

Order of results

Results for word searches are returned in reverse chronological order of proceeding filing date. Results for searches of 'starts with' type are returned in alphabetical order of a field being serached. When query both 'word' and 'starts with' criterias, or contain a 'match' criteria, the order of returned results is undefined.

Letter case

TTABUE searches are case insensitive.

Punctuation marks in search fields

The following describes formal rules used by search engine regarding non-alphanumeric characters.

Non-alphanumeric characters have the following rules for searching:

When entered word contains punctuation mark, it should match exactly with a word in a database. One exception of this is dot, comma and semicolon at the end of the word. When one of these characters is present at the end of one of the search words, database is being looked for words with this character at the end, and without it. E.g. search for a word
INC,
returns results with words 'INC', 'INC.', 'INC.' and 'INC;'
When entered word does not contain punctuation mark, all non alphanumeric characters in a input string are treated as word delimiters. E.g. search for a word
HUMPTY
finds results with word 'HUMPTY' delimited by any non-alphanumeric symbols. The document with the word 'HUMPTY-DUMPTY' will be returned with this search, as dash is treated as a word delimiter as any other non-alphanumeric character.
Additional search is performed when query string contains a set of short tokens by combining the tokens together. Search for a combination of short words returns results where these tokens are either separate or combined togeter if total length of the combined token does not exceed 4 characters. E.g. search for a string
A B C D
finds resuls with words A, B, C and D as well as results with words: AB and CD, results the words 'ABC' and 'D', results with words 'A' and 'BCD' and results with a word 'ABCD'.

Number of search results displayed

TTABVUE displays up to 25 hits on one page. Moving to next, previous page or to a page within a given number may be performed with the navigation bar displayed on each screen when the TTABVUE results contain more than one page.

URL legend

The following table provides a list of shortcuts that may be used to perform various searches by typing the query text in a URL.

Query description	TTABVUE URL
Proceeding number 1234568	http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?pno=1234568
Serial or registration number 1234568	http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?propno=1234568
Property name 'MARK'	http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?propname=MARK
All words in the document 'CAT INC'	http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?qs=CAT+INC
Party name 'CAT INC'	http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?pnam=CAT+INC
Correspondence name 'CAT INC'	http://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/v?cn=CAT+INC

Appending the token &rawxml=1 to a query URL causes results to the query to be returned in XML format. The XML format may be easier for parsing by tracking programs.

Representation Before the Board

The only persons who may sign and file papers or otherwise conduct business on behalf of an applicant before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board are:

The applicant, if the applicant is an individual;
An officer, general partner, or sole proprietor of a business;
An attorney at law admitted to practice in one of the United States;
Foreign attorneys qualified to practice before the USPTO pursuant to Patent and Trademark Rule 10.14, but only if the attorney or agent's client is located in that country. Currently, only attorneys or agents from Canada are qualified under this provision.

While non-attorneys may appear as noted above, Board proceedings are legal in nature, and often involve complex questions of trademark law and procedure, and TTAB personnel are not permitted to give legal advice to any party. Many parties find the advice of qualified counsel essential. The Board will not give any special consideration to parties who elect not to retain qualified counsel.

USPTO personnel cannot assist in choosing an attorney.

For further information regarding representation before the TTAB, see Patent and Trademark Rule 10.14, 10.18; TBMP §§ 114-116.

Correspondence Information

This information is necessary so that the Board may communicate with the filer regarding the submission. Please make sure that both the address and the e-mail address is correct. The Board will send ESTTA filing confirmation - and in some cases orders - via e-mail. Unless otherwise noted, if an order is sent via e-mail, no hard copy will follow.

Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB)

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board is an administrative tribunal with jurisdiction to consider only whether a particular party is entitled to have or keep a federal trademark registration within the context of an opposition, cancellation, or concurrent use proceeding.

The TTAB hears two types of proceedings; trials in inter partes matters (oppositions, cancellations, and concurrent use proceedings), and ex parte appeals from an examining attorney's refusal to register a mark. Inter partes proceedings involve a dispute between two (or more) parties, while appeals involve only an applicant and the USPTO.

The Board cannot consider questions of infringement or unfair competition, and may not grant injunctions, award damages, or attorney fees. Any such matters must be brought before a court of competent jurisdiction.

For more information about the TTAB and its jurisdiction, see Trademark Act § 17, 20; TBMP section 102, et seq.

Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure (TBMP)

The TBMP contains a collection of many of the statutes, rules, cases and procedures relevant to practice before the TTAB. However, while a useful tool for practitioners, the TBMP is not intended to be an exhaustive reference to all areas of TTAB practice. Some relevant statutes and cases may not be included in the TBMP, and practitioners should be aware that statutes and rules have been amended since the current version of the manual was published, and many relevant cases have been decided.

The TBMP (1st ed. 1995) can be found on the USPTO web site at www.uspto.gov/web/offices/dcom/ttab/tbmp/.

Changes to the TTAB's rules since publication of the first edition of the TBMP include those found on the USPTO web site at www.uspto.gov/web/offices/com/sol/og/1998/week42/patrule.htm.

The Trademark Act, as amended, can also be found on the USPTO web site at www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/tmlaw2.html.

Publication

Prior to registration on the Principal Register, all marks are published in the Official Gazette of the Patent and Trademark Office. The Official Gazette is published weekly and provides notice to all potential opposers. If an opposition or extension of time to oppose is not filed within the thirty days following publication, a mark will proceed to registration or issuance of a notice of allowance, as appropriate.

Marks to be registered on the Supplemental Register are not published prior to registration, and are therefore not subject to opposition. If any party believes it is damaged by the existence of a mark on the Supplemental Register, it may file a petition for cancellation.

Recent editions of the Official Gazette are now published on the USPTO web site at www.uspto.gov/web/trademarks/tmog/. Information on ordering paper copies of the Official Gazette may be found at www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/oeip/catalog/products/tmprod-1.htm#OGTM.

For further information on publication, see Trademark Act § 12; Trademark Rule 2.80-2.84; TMEP (Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure) § 1502.