Services

Trademarks

Clearing, registering, and defending the names your business is built on.

Trademark counsel from the first search to the final ruling

A trademark is often the most valuable asset a young company owns, and one of the most expensive to lose. Litigateways helps founders, established companies, and creators choose names that can be registered and defended, secure federal registrations, and enforce their rights when someone else crosses the line.

Every matter is handled personally by Francisco Ferreiro, who is Board Certified in Intellectual Property Law by The Florida Bar and has practiced since 2007.

What we handle

  • Trademark clearance: knockout searches, full searches, and written opinions before you launch
  • USPTO applications and prosecution, including responses to likelihood-of-confusion, descriptiveness, and specimen refusals
  • Portfolio management: maintenance and renewal filings, assignments, recordals, and monitoring for conflicting applications
  • Oppositions, cancellations, and appeals before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
  • Cease-and-desist letters, whether you are sending one or answering one
  • Licensing, assignment, and coexistence agreements
  • Federal litigation of trademark, trade dress, and unfair competition claims
  • Domain name disputes under the UDRP and the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act
  • U.S. counsel for foreign companies and law firms on USPTO filings and TTAB proceedings

These matters are handled before the USPTO, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, federal district courts, and UDRP panels, and many are resolved by agreement before they get that far. USPTO rules require trademark applicants domiciled outside the United States to be represented by a U.S.-licensed attorney.

Primary contact

Francisco Ferreiro

Francisco Ferreiro

Attorney at Law

Board Certified in Intellectual Property Law by The Florida Bar. Handles trademark clearance, USPTO prosecution, TTAB proceedings, and trademark litigation for clients in the U.S. and abroad. Works in English and Spanish.

francisco@litigateways.com
(941) 702-3042

Get in touch
About Francisco

How a trademark registration works

Step 1

Search

We check USPTO records and the marketplace for names that could block yours, then tell you in writing how much risk we see.

Step 2

File

We prepare the application: the owner, the goods and services, the filing basis, and the specimen. Many refusals trace back to choices made at this stage.

Step 3

Examination

A USPTO examining attorney reviews the application. If an Office Action issues, the response is usually due in three months, and one three-month extension is available for a fee.

Step 4

Registration

The mark is published for a 30-day opposition period and then registers. Keeping it registered takes a maintenance filing between the fifth and sixth years and a renewal every ten years.

Flat fee

Brand launch review

One engagement that covers a new name before you invest in it. If the knockout search turns up risk, we will recommend a full clearance search before you commit.

Request a brand launch review
  1. 01Trademark knockout search
  2. 02Domain availability in the extensions that matter to you
  3. 03An acquisition plan if the domain you want is taken
  4. 04Preparation of the federal trademark application

Common questions

No. A state business filing only puts the name on the state’s list of companies, and a domain registration is a contract with a registrar. Trademark rights come from using the name for your goods or services. A federal registration adds nationwide priority dating back to the filing date and the right to use the ® symbol.

The USPTO does not require one, but it will compare your application against registered and pending marks, and it does not refund the filing fee if it refuses you. A search also covers businesses that use a name without registering it. An examiner may never see those users, but they can still oppose your application or sue.

When nothing goes wrong, about a year from filing. An Office Action or an opposition can add months. An intent-to-use application stays open until you start using the mark and file proof of use.

It is a letter from the USPTO examining attorney explaining why the application cannot be approved as filed. Some are procedural, such as a change to the wording of the goods and services. Others are substantive refusals, such as likelihood of confusion with another mark or descriptiveness. Most must be answered within three months, and missing the deadline abandons the application.

If the application has been published, you can file an opposition with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, generally within 30 days of publication, and extensions of that deadline are available. If the mark has already registered, a petition to cancel may still be possible, depending on the grounds and how long ago it registered. Either way, the question is whose rights came first.

Yes. USPTO rules require trademark applicants domiciled outside the U.S. to be represented by a U.S.-licensed attorney. Francisco acts as U.S. counsel for foreign companies and their local law firms, in English or Spanish.

Choosing a name, or answering a refusal?

Tell us the name, what you sell under it, and where things stand with the USPTO. Francisco will review your inquiry and follow up.

Schedule a consultation