Due Diligence

37 C.F.R.  (Extract) Requirement to correspond

electronically with the Office and duty to monitor status.

. . .

(d) Notices issued or actions taken by the USPTO are

displayed in the USPTO's publicly available electronic systems. Applicants and

registrants are responsible for monitoring the status of their applications and

registrations in the USPTO's electronic systems during the following time periods:

(1) At least every six months between the filing date of

the application and issuance of a registration;

(2) After filing an affidavit of use or excusable nonuse

under section 8 or section 71 of the Act, or a renewal application under section 9 of

the Act, at least every six months until the registrant receives notice that the

affidavit or renewal application has been accepted; and

(3) After notice of the institution of an expungement or

reexamination proceeding under § 2.92, at least every three months until the

registrant receives a notice of termination under § 2.94.

Applicants and registrants are responsible for tracking the

status of matters pending before the USPTO.

37 C.F.R. §2.23(d)

;

TMEP

§108.03

. It is reasonable to expect some notice from or action by

the USPTO within six months of submitting a document in an application or registration. A

party who has not received a notice or action from the USPTO within that time frame is

responsible for checking the matter’s status and requesting corrective action, if necessary.

37 C.F.R. §2.23(d)

.

Applicants and registrants can check the status of an

application or registration through the TSDR database on the USPTO website at

https://tsdr.uspto.gov/

, which is generally

available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The party should print the TSDR screen and

place it in the party’s own file, in order to have a record of the status inquiry and the

information learned

ary.

37 C.F.R. §2.23(d)

.

Applicants and registrants can check the status of an

application or registration through the TSDR database on the USPTO website at

https://tsdr.uspto.gov/

, which is generally

available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The party should print the TSDR screen and

place it in the party’s own file, in order to have a record of the status inquiry and the

information learned.

A party who does not have access to the Internet can call

the Trademark Assistance Center (TAC) at (571) 272-9250 or (800) 786-9199 to determine the

status or to obtain clarification about the status. After making a telephone status inquiry,

a party should make a note in the party’s own file as to the date of the status inquiry and

the information learned. No further documentation is required to establish that the status

inquiry was made.

If a status inquiry reveals that a document submitted to

the USPTO is not in the electronic record or was not received in the USPTO, that an Office

action or notice was issued but not received by the applicant or registrant, that an

application has been abandoned or a registration cancelled or expired, or that some other

problem exists, then the applicant or registrant is responsible for promptly requesting

corrective action in writing.

If an application has been abandoned, a petition to revive

under

37 C.F.R. §2.66

(if not

due to USPTO error) or request for reinstatement under

37 C.F.R.

§2.64(a)

(if due to USPTO error) must be filed through the trademark

electronic filing system.

See

TMEP

§§1702–1708

,

1713

,

1714

. If a registration has been cancelled or expired, a request for

reinstatement under

37 C.F.R. §2.64(b)

(if

due to USPTO error) or formal petition under

37 C.F.R. §2.146

(if not due to USPTO error) should

generally be filed through the trademark electronic filing system.

See

TMEP

§1712

. See

TMEP §301.02

regarding the

limited exceptions for paper submissions

tem.

See

TMEP

§§1702–1708

,

1713

,

1714

. If a registration has been cancelled or expired, a request for

reinstatement under

37 C.F.R. §2.64(b)

(if

due to USPTO error) or formal petition under

37 C.F.R. §2.146

(if not due to USPTO error) should

generally be filed through the trademark electronic filing system.

See

TMEP

§1712

. See

TMEP §301.02

regarding the

limited exceptions for paper submissions.

In all cases, petitions and requests for reinstatement will

be denied if filed more than six months after the electronic record is updated to reflect

that an application is abandoned or that a registration is cancelled or expired.

37 C.F.R. §§2.64(a)(1)(ii)

,

(b)(1)(ii)

,

2.66(a)(2)

,

2.146(d)(2)

.

These deadlines protect third parties who rely on the

Trademark electronic record to determine whether a chosen mark is available for use or

registration. For example, a third party may search USPTO records and understand that an

earlier-filed potentially conflicting mark will not be revived or reinstated more than six

months after the date the electronic record indicates that it was abandoned.