The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) is an administrative tribunal within the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The TTAB is empowered to determine the right to register a trademark. It has no authority to determine the right to use one, nor broader questions of infringement, unfair competition, damages or injunctive relief. The TTAB decides ex parte appeals from decisions by USPTO Examiners denying registration of marks, and inter partes proceedings challenging the registration of marks. Decisions of the TTAB may be appealed to a United States district court, or to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Practices and procedures for litigating before the TTAB are governed by the Trademark Rules of Practice and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure (TBMP) is an important guide to practice before the TTAB.
Judges of the TTAB
The Administrative Trademark Judges of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) are appointed by the United States Secretary of Commerce in consultation with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property. Each appeal and adversarial proceeding is heard and decided by at least three judges of the TTAB. There are currently twenty-eight judges sitting at the TTAB (as of August 2023), as follows:
| Judge | Appointed | Prior professional experience | Education |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gerard F. Rogers (Chief Judge) | 1999 | Trademark Examining Attorney, 1987–90; Assistant to the Assistant Commissioner for Trademarks, 1990–92; TTAB Staff Attorney, 1992–99 | B.A., University of Massachusetts Amherst; J.D. magna cum laude, New England School of Law |
| Michael B. Adlin | 2012 | Private Practice; USPTO Office of External Affairs; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., Duke University; J.D., Boston University School of Law |
| Martha B. Allard | 2021 | Private Practice (Nashville, TN) | B.S., University of Kentucky; J.D. cum laude, Western New England University School of Law |
| Marc A. Bergsman | 2006 | Trademark Examining Attorney; Trademark Managing Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Private Practice (Washington, DC) | B.A., Miami University; J.D. Cleveland Marshall College of Law, Cleveland State University |
| Thomas L. Casagrande | 2023 | Private Practice (Houston, TX; New Haven, CT); Associate Solicitor USPTO | B.A., University of Pennsylvania; J.D. with Honors, University of Connecticut School of Law |
| Peter W. Cataldo | 2006 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., Canisius College; J.D., Albany Law School |
| Robert H. Coggins | 2016 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.S., Davidson College; J.D., Wake Forest University School of Law |
| Wendy B. Cohen | 2023 | Private Practice; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., University of Missouri - Columbia; J.D., University of Missouri School of Law |
| Elizabeth A. Dunn | 2019 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., Boston University; J.D., American University Washington College of Law |
| Jennifer L. Elgin | 2023 | Private Practice; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.S., Cornell University; J.D., Emory University School of Law |
| Christen M. English | 2019 | Private Practice; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., Boston College; J.D., Columbus School of Law |
| Cheryl S. Goodman | 2014 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., University of Illinois; J.D., Florida State University College of Law |
| Cindy B. Greenbaum | 2012 | Private Practice (New York, NY; Washington, DC); Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; TTAB Managing Interlocutory Attorney | Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania; J.D., New York University School of Law |
| David K. Heasley | 2015 | Private Practice (Washington, DC) | B.A., Johns Hopkins University; J.D., University of Maryland School of Law |
| Jonathan Hudis | 2019 | Private Practice (Washington, DC; Alexandria, VA) | B.A., State University of New York at Albany; J.D., Brooklyn Law School |
| Melanye K. Johnson | 2020 | Private Practice (Detroit, MI; Washington, DC); Corporate Counsel; Senior Counsel, Office of General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) | B.A., University of Michigan; J.D., Ohio State University Moritz College of Law |
| Karen S. Kuhlke | 2005 | Private Practice (Washington, DC); Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney | B.A., University of Kansas; M.A., Columbia University; J.D., Georgetown University Law Center |
| Christopher C. Larkin | 2016 | Private Practice (Los Angeles, CA; New York, NY); | B.A., Stanford University; J.D., Columbia Law School |
| Mark Lebow | 2020 | Private Practice (Alexandria, VA) | B.A., Florida Atlantic University; J.D., Hofstra University School of Law; LL.M. with high honors, John Marshall Law School |
| Angela Lykos | 2010 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Private Practice | B.A., M.A., Johns Hopkins University; J.D., Duke University Law School |
| Cynthia C. Lynch | 2015 | Private Practice; Attorney-Advisor at the International Trade Commission; USPTO Assistant Solicitor: USPTO Administrator for Trademark Policy and Procedure | B.A., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; J.D., University of Virginia School of Law |
| George C. Pologeorgis | 2015 | TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; TTAB Attorney in the Office of Trademark Quality Review and Training; Trademark Examining Attorney; Private Practice | B.A. University of Pennsylvania; J.D., George Washington University National Law Center |
| Thomas V. Shaw | 2011 | USPTO Associate Solicitor; Trademark Managing Attorney; Trademark Senior Attorney; Trademark Examining Attorney | B.A., The George Washington University; J.D., University of Miami School of Law |
| Jyll S. Taylor | 2006 | TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Trademark Examining Attorney | B.A., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; J.D., Howard University School of Law |
| Mark A. Thurmon | 2019 | Private practice; adjunct professor of law, University of Texas School of Law; assistant professor of law, Levin College of Law; professor of law, Southern University Law Center; former Deputy Chief Administrative Trademark Judge | B.S, Louisiana State University; J.D. with high honors, Duke University School of Law |
| Thomas W. Wellington | 2007 | TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Trademark Examining Attorney; Private Practice | B.A., University of Maryland at College Park; J.D., American University Washington College of Law |
| Frances S. Wolfson | 2010 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Private Practice | B.A., U.C. Santa Barbara; J.D., U.C.L.A. |
| Albert J. Zervas | 2005 | Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Private Practice (New York, NY; Washington, DC) | B.A. and J.D., University of Virginia |
See also
- Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals
- Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure
- Trademarks Opposition Board, the equivalent body in Canada
References
External links
- Official website
- The TTABlog – Keeping Tabs on the TTAB (Blog by John L. Welch, a Harvard-educated intellectual property attorney and frequent lecturer on TTAB practices and procedures)
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