Blog Search

On December 2, the Supreme Court held an oral argument on an issue that directly impacts one of the most important strategic decisions a trademark litigator makes: whether to oppose (cancel) someone’s trademark in a Trademark Office’s administrative proceeding or sue that party in a district court. The issue came from B&B Hardware Inc. v. Hargis Industries Inc. et al., and is framed as follows: whether an earlier ruling by U.S. Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB or Board) on...

... Appeals held that Supreme Court’s Octane Fitness standard applies to trademark cases. The Court of Appeals held that “an ‘exceptional’ case is simply one that stands out from others with respect to the substantive strength of a party’s litigation position (considering both the governing law and the facts of the case) or the unreasonable manner in which it was litigated. Consequently, the previous standard in the Third Circuit, which required a finding of culpable behavior before awarding ...