Property, intangible

a blog about ownership of intellectual property rights and its licensing


non-use

  • “Incontestability” and Cancellation

    I previously reported on a case that managed to find a non-statutory basis for cancelling an “incontestable” trademark registration, specifically that the application for the registration was void ab initio. The plaintiff and trademark owner was NetJets, with a registered trademark for a software program INTELLIJET. The defendant was a company named Intellijet Group. Both […] Continue reading

  • Working Around Incontestability

    Once a trademark is incontestable, its validity cannot be challenged except on certain limited bases. Is “void ab initio” one of them? “Void ab initio” isn’t listed in the statute as a basis for challenge, but the defendant in NetJets Inc. v. IntelliJet Group, LLC found a workaround. The plaintiff registered its trademark, INTELLIJET, for computer […] Continue reading