Avoiding Scams with your Trademark Application or Registration

Avoiding Scams with your Trademark Application or Registration

For years, the Patent and Trademark Office has faced issues with companies or individuals soliciting personal and financial information from trademark applicants illegally. Although the Office has attempted to combat these scams, these solicitors continue to come up with new ways to scam applicants. The best way to avoid falling victim to such scams is to stay educated about the many types of solicitations used. These include:

• Correspondence from the “Trademark Office”: Many scams involve sending letters, emails, or even phone calls to trademark applicants, claiming to be the Trademark Office and demanding personal information or payment to continue the registration process. Please note that the Trademark Office will never request this type of information in this way. All requests of this nature for any applications handled by our firm will come directly from our firm.
• Letters from Third-Party Companies: Some solicitations involve private companies that look official but are not. Similar to the above, these companies may demand payment or personal information. They may also claim to offer a service that seems legitimate, such as placing your trademark on an international database for a fee. However, these “services” are merely cons.
• Attorney Impersonations: Some fraudsters will go so far as to impersonate attorneys, including building fake law firm websites, providing review links, and more. These fake attorneys may claim that they can expedite your application or provide other services in an effort to solicit payment from you.
• Misleading Post-Registration Solicitations: Some companies may also solicit payment, claiming that your registration is at risk of expiring if you do not pay a fee. If the solicitation conveys a sense of urgency and demands prompt payment, there is an objectively high likelihood that the demand is a scam.

If The Sladkus Law Group prepared and filed your trademark application or is attorney of record for your pending or registered mark, all correspondence regarding your application or registration will come directly from us. Should you receive any solicitations claiming to be directly from the Trademark Office, it is highly likely that this is a scam. If you are unsure about whether a correspondence is legitimate, we are always glad to review it for you. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us with any questions!