The United States Patent and Trademark Office recently issued a new examination guide titled “Clarification of Examination Evidentiary Standard for Marks Refused as Generic.” This update to our guidance clarifies for stakeholders the USPTO’s terminology in the Trademark Manual for Examination Procedures (TMEP) regarding the examining attorney’s burden when making a genericness refusal. Specifically, the USPTO will no longer use the “clear evidence” standard in the TMEP to refer to the examining attorney’s burden to support refusal of registration on the ground that an applied-for mark is generic. The guide also clarifies that the standard for an examining attorney to establish a prima facie case of genericness is the same as for other refusals, namely, there must be sufficient evidence to support a reasonable predicate for the refusal under the applicable legal standard.

For more information, visit the Trademark examination guides webpage. Please send questions about the guide to TMPolicy@uspto.gov.