<html><head></head><body><div class="ydpcd975240yahoo-style-wrap" style="font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:16px;"><div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">I literally just got an office action a few minutes ago saying the "<span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">specimen does not match the drawing". The mark is a signature name my client goes by online. People have walked up to her on the street calling her this name. My client's website where she sells products has the mark in the corner. Her handle on social media is her mark. She does a good bit of her videos sharing client testimonials. For her speaking engagements, she uses the mark with a hashtag. I gave a good bit of social media posts as specimen with her using the mark as her handle and promoting her services and products online. I'm confused about the office action.</span></span></div><div><br></div><div class="ydpcd975240signature"><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><font size="3">Angelica N. McDonald, Esq.</font></b><br>Attorney at Law<br>McDonald Law, PLLC<br>PO Box 938<br>116 W. Edinborough Avenue<br>Raeford, NC 28376<br>Phone: (910) 758-7575 | Fax: (910) 208-0533<br>Website: www.mcdonaldlaw.legal<br></div></div></div></div></div>
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On Tuesday, January 30, 2024 at 07:17:27 PM EST, Spencer Cross via E-trademarks <e-trademarks@oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:
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<div><div id="ydp26ef07fbyiv9901871767"><div dir="ltr"><div>Hi all,</div><div><br></div><div>We recently received a "specimen does not match the drawing" refusal where we applied for the mark as a compound word mark:</div><div><br></div><div>ALPHABETA</div><div><br></div><div>But the specimen, which is a screen capture of a website, uses a logo design that shows the two words stacked:</div><div><br></div><div>ALPHA</div><div>BETA</div><div><br></div><div>Everywhere else on the site the mark is used as a compound word on one line (e.g., in the copyright notice in the footer). Unfortunately, it's a relatively sparse site and none of those other uses are great options for a specimen. </div><div><br></div><div>That refusal seems inappropriate to me. I can't imagine, for example, that a specimen depicting the vertically stacked red LEVI'S tag would be refused because it shows the mark as "L E V I ' S" or that a specimen for SUPERCELL showing <a href="https://supercell.com/en/for-media/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">their logo</a> would be refused for showing the mark as "SUP ERC ELL". <br></div><div><br></div><div>Before we talk to the client about revising their website, I'm curious
if anyone knows of any authority addressing whether it's appropriate to
conclude a standard character mark is two separate words based on its
design expression? Unfortunately I wasn't able to find anything in TMEP or McCarthy or my other go-to secondary sources, all of which only address mismatches in punctuation. I assume in the end it will be easier to just ask the client to update the website, but I'd rather not capitulate because I don't think it's an appropriate refusal.</div><div><br></div><div>Feel free to send responses off-list if you prefer.<br></div><div><br></div><div>Thanks,</div><div>Spencer</div><div><br></div><div><span class="ydp26ef07fbyiv9901871767gmail_signature_prefix">-- </span><br><div dir="ltr" class="ydp26ef07fbyiv9901871767gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><b>SPENCER CROSS</b><span style="color:rgb(68,68,68);"><br></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(68,68,68);">Senior Associate Attorney</span></div><div><br></div><img src="https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4ycE0SNHkc4gOwL9Oshfj0NFWEeFcO14WnokRmNqammMt72whoySZeNrsAiifWZ2Vl0qaCO_YY" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true" data-id="1706669098315"><br><div><span style="color:rgb(68,68,68);">680 E. Colorado Blvd., Ste. 180</span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(68,68,68);">Pasadena, CA 91101</span></div><span style="color:rgb(68,68,68);">Main: (323) 657-3380<br><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);"><a href="http://counselforcreators.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://counselforcreators.com</a><br><a href="mailto:spencer@counselforcreators.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">spencer@counselforcreators.com</a></span></span><br><a href="https://counselforcreators.com/consult/clients/sc/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><b>Click here to schedule a call with me</b></a>.<br><div><br></div><div><i><span style="color:rgb(68,68,68);">Please direct general inquiries about billing, subscriptions, etc. to <a href="mailto:hello@counselforcreators.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">hello@counselforcreators.com</a></span></i></div><div><br></div><div><img alt="" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true" data-id="1706669098315"><img alt="" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true" data-id="1706669098315"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/counselforcreators/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img alt="Facebook" src="https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4xR5A8B5myDmQkg_psezEdkzGp3FLDbfCFJmZiY2-Gsl8AlkRDwUsl0b71UwlJBfuYA6AGmRTw" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"></a> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/counselforcreators/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img alt="Instagram" src="https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4ynmKPeBWUe13bNfaTEq6lTX9SF2oCog11uoriDJYfOiLJ8i9egRsl0Iih6E0IeDC-WYO-CIfU" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"></a> <a href="https://www.yelp.com/biz/counsel-for-creators-los-angeles-10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img alt="Yelp" src="https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4wyIDmTjdtYYZvBl5aZ8vh85BKKMsUkNhcPMR9I2Xd2wGF2WG2V0xgmnfKa1UYQ-thYMj-gqR4" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"></a> <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/spencercross/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img alt="LinkedIn" src="https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4zb92uvu4Cawxv7br-tA4ouqwQJNkqV3f1jyT3ojMOILOyKx1lMKEv8bwH4VW6H-Fpi3XkyRsE" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"></a><img alt="" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true" data-id="1706669098315"></div><div><span style="color:rgb(102,102,102);"><font size="2" style="background-color: inherit;"><span style="font-family:times new roman, serif;"><b><br></b></span></font></span></div><div><span style="color:rgb(102,102,102);"><font size="2" style="background-color: inherit;"><span style="font-family:times new roman, serif;"><b>CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE</b>: <i>The information contained in this e-mail and any accompanying attachment(s) is intended only for the use of the intended recipient and may be confidential and/or privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, unauthorized use, disclosure or copying is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please immediately notify me at <a href="mailto:spencer@counselforcreators.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">spencer@counselforcreators.com</a> and delete the original message and all copies from your system. Thank you.</i></span></font></span></div></div></div></div></div>
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