Office Action Responses

Once you file a trademark application, the United States Patent and Trademark Office will review your application for compliance with U.S. trademark rules and regulations.  If the USPTO has any concern with your application, it will issue a notice called an Official Office Action or Office Action. 

The Office Action typically supplies information as to how to correct whatever problems exist in the application and gives the applicant six (6) months to respond.   The USPTO will not send you reminders of this deadline and if no response is filed within the statutory six (6) month period, then the application will be deemed abandoned and filing fees lost.  Each Office Action is different.  Some represent a denial of your application while other Office Actions seek clarification of the information provided. 

If a response is timely filed, the application will be re-examined in light of the applicant’s response. If the USPTO finds that his/her requirements/ refusals were in fact met by the applicant’s response, he/she can then approve the trademark for publication. If the USPTO finds that there is at least one requirement or refusal which was not sufficiently addressed by the applicant, then the USPTO may issue another office action refusing registration and/or making additional requirements as called for under the circumstances. Again, the applicant has another opportunity to respond. This procedure can continue until the USPTO’s action is made final or until the applicant fails to respond. Each Office Action is specific to the application and case at hand. 

Technical refusals relate to issues in the application that need to be amended, clarified, or re-submitted.  Substantive refusals require the submission of legal arguments, caselaw, and supporting evidence.

MAVEN® IP has the experience to respond to any Office Action.  Whether it is responding to a technical issue or a more substantive response, we can help.  Every USPTO Office Action is unique so if you complete our intake form, we will review your Office Action (at no charge to you!), provide you with options, and provide you with a flat fee for preparing a response.