"Professor Rebecca Curtin has filed her petition for writ of certiorari seeking rights to challenge United Trademark Holdings' application to register RAPUNZEL for dolls and toy figures. Curtin has a great case that the mark is generic. The problem with Curtin's case is procedural. Curtin is a consumer, not a competing doll maker, and the Federal Circuit ruled that consumers do not have standing to oppose trademarks based upon their genericness, descriptiveness, or failure to function as a trademark."
"The statute allows opposition proceedings to be filed by "[a]ny person who believes that he would be damaged by the registration of a mark upon the principal register." 15 U.S.C. § 1063. And, a textual approach would seem to allow consumer oppositions -- and even those who would read an implicit "reasonableness" into the statute ("reasonably believes he would be damaged")."
Professor Rebecca Curtin filed a petition for certiorari to challenge United Trademark Holdings' application to register RAPUNZEL for dolls and toy figures, asserting the mark is generic. The Federal Circuit held that consumers lack standing to oppose registrations on grounds of genericness, descriptiveness, or failure to function as a trademark, limiting opposition to those with competitor-like interests. 15 U.S.C. §1063 permits any person who believes they would be damaged to file an opposition, and Curtin asserted particularized harms as a longtime collector. The analysis also outlines a roadmap for Director Squires to administratively restrict IPR petitioner standing using the Lexmark framework.
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