Changes in Requirements for Specimens and for Affidavits or Declarations of Continued Use or Excusable Nonuse in Trademark Cases

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) is extending until September 23, 2011, the period for public comment on the proposal to revise the Trademark Rules of Practice and the Rules of Practice for Filings Pursuant to the Madrid Protocol to permit the USPTO to require:  any information, exhibits, and affidavits or declarations deemed reasonably necessary to examine an affidavit or declaration of continued use or excusable nonuse in trademark cases, or for the USPTO to assess the accuracy and integrity of the register; and upon request, more than one specimen in connection with a use-based trademark application, an allegation of use, an amendment to a registered mark, or an affidavit or declaration of continued use in trademark cases.  The notice of proposed rulemaking published on July 12, 2011, (76 FR 40839 (July 12, 2011)), and is available at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-07-12/pdf/2011-17121.pdf