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What are the most common grounds for application dismissal by USPTO?

Founder & Trademark Attorney

The two most common grounds for a USPTO refusal are likelihood of confusion and descriptiveness.

Likelihood of confusion arises when the examiner identifies an existing registered or pending mark that is similar enough to yours in appearance, sound, or meaning, and the goods or services overlap sufficiently that consumers might confuse the two sources. This is the most frequent basis for a refusal.

Descriptiveness arises when the mark merely describes a characteristic, quality, or feature of the goods or services rather than identifying a single commercial source. Marks that are merely laudatory ("Best Quality"), geographically descriptive, or primarily a surname also fall under this ground.

Other grounds include: the mark being primarily merely a surname, the mark being deceptive or immoral, or the application containing procedural deficiencies such as an inadequate specimen or an incorrect goods and services description.

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