Trademark Clearance Search

Imagine investing significant time and money into promoting your brand, only to find out a year or two later that you have to completely change it because someone else is already using the same or a similar trademark. This costly mistake is all too common for small businesses that fail to conduct a thorough trademark clearance search.

If you’ve never registered a trademark before, it might sound easy to figure out if someone else is using the name you’re interested in registering. However, this process is not as simple as browsing a search engine or conducting a quick search at the USPTO. While a screening search of the USPTO database can help identify near-identical registered marks, it cannot find unregistered marks (also known as “common law marks”). For this, a comprehensive clearance search is needed.

If you attempt to use a name that is already trademarked by another company, they might have legal grounds to take action against you. This is why it is so important to perform a thorough search before registering a trademark. Working with a professional can help you ensure that your potential trademark is unused not only at the federal level, but also in the marketplace. If it is not being used, then a trademark is much more likely to successfully pass through the registration process. An experienced trademark attorney can also help you navigate the complexities of trademark law, interpret the search results, and determine whether two different brands with similar names can coexist or if one is likely to infringe on another.

Harrigan IP is dedicated to performing thorough trademark clearance searches that surface the conflicts which actually bear on whether your mark can be registered and used. We search the full federal register at the USPTO, and not just for near-identical matches: we look for phonetic equivalents, alternate spellings, marks that contain yours as a component, and marks used on related goods and services. We then look beyond the register at common law uses in the marketplace, business names, and domain name registrations, because rights in the United States come from use rather than registration, and an unregistered user can still stop you. Our extensive search approach minimizes the risk of overlooking potential conflicts that could jeopardize your trademark application or lead to legal disputes in the future.

After this process, we can write an official opinion letter. This letter outlines the results of our search and gives you a formal legal opinion on the viability of registering your desired trademark. The results of an official clearance search can give you the peace of mind and security to file a trademark application without worrying about other businesses with similar names. To learn more about our trademark clearance search services or to schedule a consultation, contact the experienced staff at Harrigan IP today.