USPTO要求外国商标申请者由美国执业律师代理

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Jining He 何冀宁

August 01, 2019

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On July 2, 2019, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced a new rule requiring all foreign-domiciled trademark applicants, registrants, and parties to Trademark Trial and Appeal Board proceedings to be represented by an attorney who is licensed to practice law in the United States. The requirement applies to all trademark applicants, registrants, and parties whose permanent legal residence or principal place of business is outside the United States. This new trademark rule has an effective date of August 3, 2019.

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The USPTO said the new rules were aimed at cracking down on fraudulent trademark registration applications and improving the quality of submissions to the USPTO. Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO Andrei Iancu said, “Businesses rely on the U.S. trademark register to make important legal decisions about their brands. In order to maintain the accuracy and integrity of the register, for the benefit of all its users, the USPTO must have the appropriate tools to enforce compliance by all applicants and registrants. This rule is a significant step in combatting fraudulent submissions.” “Many other countries worldwide have had this requirement for decades,” said USPTO Commissioner for Trademarks Mary Boney Denison. “We believe that this new rule will help improve the quality of submissions to the USPTO.”

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Additionally, U.S.-licensed attorneys representing anyone before the USPTO in trademark matters are required to confirm they are an active member in good standing of their bar and to provide their bar membership information. The unauthorized practice of trademark law before the USPTO is a serious matter and we will take appropriate actions if unauthorized practice is occurring. These actions may include: Rejecting application submissions that were improperly signed or authorized; Excluding individuals and entities from acting as an attorney, correspondent, signatory, or domestic representative in all trademark matters before the USPTO. Employing any individual who is not authorized to practice before the USPTO to represent you in connection with your trademark application may: delay and prolong the trademark application examination process; lead to the abandonment of your application; jeopardize the validity of any resulting registration.

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Therefore, all foreign-domiciled trademark applicants, registrants should be represented by an attorney who is licensed to practice law in the United States about trademark practice before the USPTO in order to obtain professional legal advice, avoid falling into the application trap, increase the possibility of registration, and better exercise the trademark right.

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2019年7月2日，美国专利商标局（USPTO）宣布了一项新规定，要求所有外国注册商标申请人、注册人以及参与商标审判和上诉委员会诉讼的当事人均由美国执业律师代理，并由其负责处理所有的商标申请事务。该规定适用于所有商标申请人、注册人以及其永久法定居住地或主要营业地点在美国境外的当事人。此新商标规则将于2019年8月3日生效。

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USPTO表示，新规定出台的目的是为了打击欺诈性商标申请，提高向USPTO提交文件的质量。USPTO局长安德烈·伊安库表示，“许多企业主要根据美国商标注册信息对自身品牌作出重要决定。为了保持注册的准确性和完整性以及保证所有用户的利益，USPTO必须制定适当的规定使所有申请人和注册人符合相关要求。新规定象征着我们在打击恶意提交商标申请的道路上迈出了至关重要的一步。” USPTO商标专员玛丽·博尼·丹尼森说：“几十年来，全球许多其他国家都有这样的要求。我们相信，这项新规定将有助于提高提交给USPTO的文件的质量。”

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美国代理商标申请人的执业律师必须具备以下所有条件：证明他们在美国州、联邦或地区最高法院的良好信誉律师资格的声明；有关其律所成员资格的资料(说明、人数及加入年份)。如果不具备上述条件，从事未经授权的商标事务属严重的问题，USPTO将采取适当的行动，包括：驳回未适当签署或授权的申请；禁止个人和实体在USPTO的所有商标事务中担任律师、联系人、签署人或国内代理人。商标申请人可能会面临更长时间的商标申请审查程序，被迫放弃申请，直接危及商标的有效注册。

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因此，外国商标申请者必须雇佣美国执业律师在USPTO从事商标事务，以获取专业的法律建议，避免落入申请陷阱，增加注册通过的可能性，更好地行使商标权。