[E-trademarks] Name of a living individual

[Orvis]

This happened to me. No consent signed as part of the transaction. The brand is arguably famous and worldwide so big deal.  I reviewed some of the earliest registrations. I found a statement from an examiner in an early filing saying consent was of record. I just pointed to that examiner statement taking the position that consent was already of record. It worked 4 or 5 times.

Sep 12, 2025 7:05:21 AM Carl Oppedahl via E-trademarks <e-trademarks at oppedahl-lists.com>:

> On 9/11/2025 11:45 PM, a listserv member wrote:
>> I have a client who bought an apparel company whose trademark is the name of the company's founder -- let's say "BJ".
>> 
> Sounds like what needed to happen, before the client handed over the money to buy the company, is somebody making sure that part of what was being bought was a piece of paper that addressed this situation.  Part of the due diligence (before handing over the money) should have been:
> 
> * checking to see whether BJ is still alive;  and
> * if BJ is still alive, obtaining from BJ a written promise to sign any and all needed trademark-related documents in the future.
> 
> Sounds like the money got handed over without this having been done.  So now (in addition to looking to see who should have done the due diligence) the question is how to get some newly filed US trademark application for "BJ" to get approved for pub.
> 
> I guess an urgent task is to check to see whether BJ is still alive.  If not, then just preserve proof of lack-of-life and tell the Examiner that "BJ" is not the name of a living individual.  Problem solved.
> 
> If BJ is still alive but is likely to die within six months, one approach would be to file a priority case in some non-US trademark office, then at the appropriate time, file the US case, claiming priority from the priority case.
> 
> Now comes the archaeology task.  We locate the purchase-and-sell agreement.  We scrutinize it from top to bottom.  Surely it contains a "cleanup" section, something along the lines of:
> 
> After Closing Date, Seller promises to execute any and all documents required to effectuate the terms and conditions of this Purchase-and Sell agreement.
> 
> Except that hopefully it also said "... BJ and Seller promise ...".  Or maybe the agreement has a definitions section that defines "Seller" to mean "BJ and Seller Entity and their successors-in-interest" or whatever made sense at the time.  It would also help if, for example, the purchase-and-sell agreement called for some of the closing money to go to BJ personally.
> 
> So anyway, depending on the results of the archaeology, maybe one or more of the following might make the problem go away:
> 
> * just asking Seller nicely might prompt Seller to round up the needed signature from BJ to get this single application past the refusal; or
> * just asking Seller nicely might prompt Seller to round up the signature from BJ on a document that is worded not only to get this single application past the refusal but that also addresses any and all future applications; or
> * simply filing with the Trademark Office the purchase-and-sale agreement including the "cleanup" section (in lieu of the signature from BJ) along with appropriate explanation might conceivably prompt the Examiner to withdraw the refusal; or
> * filing with the Trademark Office the purchase-and-sale agreement, along with proof that you asked the Seller nicely and that the Seller has not (to date) provided the needed cleanup document.
> 
> Path number 4 might work even if the Seller never actually rounds up the needed signature.  Two documents land on the desk of the Examiner -- a first document that says (more or less) that if you ask the Seller nicely, they have to do the cleanup.  A second document that says you asked the Seller nicely and so on.
> 
> And then the Examiner concludes that even if you 
> 
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