Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Intellectual Property Law Blogs -> The TTABlog

Intellectual Property Law

: The TTABlog

TTAB Reverses 2(d) Refusal of "COMMUNITY TRUST BANK & Design" Over "COMMUNITY TRUST"

Apparently a registration for the mark COMMUNITY TRUST for banking services is hardly worth the paper it's printed on. The Board reversed a Section 2(d) refusal to register COMMUNITY TRUST BANK & Design for banking services [TRUST BANK disclaimed], finding it not likely to cause confusion with the registered mark COMMUNITY TRUST for the same services [TRUST disclaimed]. It concluded that "community" and "trust" are common and weak formatives, and therefore that the design portion of the applied-for mark must be given more weight. In re Community Trust Bank, Serial No. 76685026 (September 25, 2009) [not precedential].The Board noted the differences in the marks at issue, observing that "[w]ords are more likely to be more significant than the design in a mark...continue to full post

Full post as published by The TTABlog on September 28, 2009 (boomark / email).