News & Analysis as of November 17, 2024

Iancu v. Brunetti

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The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the government from making laws respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech or the press, preventing citizens from peacefully assembling, or interfering with citizens' ability to petition the government for redress of their grievances. The First Amendment is one of the most sacred aspects of the American legal tradition and has spawned a vast body of jurisprudence and commentary. less -

From Rubio's Joke to the Supreme Court: The Journey of 'Trump Too Small' in Vidal v. Elster

Morrison & Foerster LLP on 6/17/2024

Does the Lanham Act’s restriction on registration of trademarks that include an individual’s name without the consent of such individual violate the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment, even when the mark expresses...more

Supreme Court to Examine Free Speech Limits in “TRUMP TOO SMALL” Trademark Case

Kohrman Jackson & Krantz LLP on 8/4/2023

The intersection of free speech and private business branding is once again in front of the Supreme Court of the United States. On June 5th, the Supreme Court decided to hear Vidal v. Elster, Case 22-704, an appeal from the...more

Disparaging, Immoral, and Scandalous Trademarks: Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Mean You Should

Bodman on 9/8/2021

At a Glance - Even though the Supreme Court has paved the way for brands to register trademarks that may be considered disparaging, immoral, or scandalous, brand owners are reversing themselves and voluntarily changing....more

Tips for Companies Saying Goodbye to Racial Stereotypes in Branding

Hogan Lovells on 4/21/2021

The last year has seen urgent discussions concerning racism, discrimination, police violence, inequality, and social justice come to the forefront of life in the United States. Corporate America – and its brands – responded...more

SCOTUS Gives a “FUCT” in Brunetti: First Amendment Supports “Immoral” or “Scandalous” Trademarks

Fenwick & West LLP on 8/25/2019

On June 24, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Iancu v. Brunetti, struck down the Lanham Act’s prohibition on the registration of “immoral” or “scandalous” trademarks. Justice Kagan wrote for the 6-3 majority, holding that the...more

Intellectual Property Bulletin - Summer 2019

Fenwick & West LLP on 8/21/2019

In This Issue - A Looming AI War: Transparency v. IP Rights - As artificial intelligence systems become more prevalent in daily life, efforts to create a unifying set of AI principles have intensified. In the past few...more

No Longer “FUCT” - Scandalous Mark Provision Struck Down By Supreme Court

International Lawyers Network on 8/5/2019

What constitutes a “scandalous” trademark? The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has been grappling with this question since the enactment of the 1905 Trademark Act, later codified in the 1946 Lanham...more

Immoral No More: SCOTUS Strikes Down Ban on Registration of Offensive Trademarks

McDermott Will & Emery on 8/5/2019

In a 6–3 opinion, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed a 2017 US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit decision holding the ban on registration of immoral or scandalous trademarks under the Lanham Act to be an...more

SCOTUS Paves the Way for FUCT Trademark, Causing a Bit of an Application Sh**storm at the USPTO

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on 7/19/2019

“FUCT.” You can pronounce it as four letters, one after the other. Or you can pronounce it like Justice Kagan as the “past participle form of a well-known word of profanity.” Either way, the word can be registered as a...more

Supreme Court Ruling Allows Registration of “Scandalous” or “Immoral” Trademarks

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck on 7/9/2019

Last week, on June 24, 2019, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Lanham Act’s “immoral or scandalous” bar to trademark registration constitutes viewpoint discrimination in violation of the First Amendment, and thus...more

Supreme Court Strikes Down Ban on "Immoral" or "Scandalous" Trademarks

Lathrop GPM on 7/3/2019

In a decision that is likely to trigger a rush to register trademarks that may be seen as obscene, vulgar, or profane, the U.S. Supreme Court recently determined, in a 6-3 opinion authored by Justice Elena Kagan, that a...more

Client Alert: The Trademarks THE SLANTS, REDSKINS and Now FUCT Are Registerable Trademarks Following the Supreme Court’s Iancu v....

Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP on 7/2/2019

In permitting the registration of the “vulgar” term FUCT, the Supreme Court recently extended its 2016 ruling from Matal v. Tam, which allowed the registration of the trademark THE SLANTS for an Asian-American rock band...more

The Supreme Court Says Yes To "Seven Dirty Words"

Tarter Krinsky & Drogin LLP on 7/2/2019

The road to permitting the registration of George Carlin's "seven dirty words" began in 2017, with the Supreme Court holding unconstitutional the Trademark Act's prohibition against registration of trademarks which are...more

Supreme Court Holds Ban on Immoral or Scandalous Trademarks Unconstitutional

Akerman LLP - Marks, Works & Secrets on 7/1/2019

On June 24, 2019, the United States Supreme Court, in Iancu v. Brunetti, reviewing the trademark application for “FUCT”, held that the Lanham’s Act’s provision, prohibiting the registration of “immoral[] or scandalous”...more

Son of Tam: Supreme Court Strikes Down Lanham Act Section 2(a) For "Immoral" and "Scandalous" Marks

Foley Hoag LLP - Making Your Mark on 7/1/2019

In our prior blog entries... we followed the course of Matal v. Tam, the case involving the mark “THE SLANTS.” In that case, the Supreme Court struck down a portion of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1052(a), on...more

Supreme Court Rules Ban on ‘Immoral or Scandalous’ Trademarks Unconstitutional

ArentFox Schiff on 7/1/2019

On Monday, the Supreme Court held that the ban on “immoral or scandalous” trademarks was unconstitutional under the First Amendment. The Court found that, as with the recently struck down ban on “disparaging” marks, the ban...more

Lanham Act’s Prohibition Of Immoral And Scandalous Marks Is Officially “FUCT”

Fox Rothschild LLP on 7/1/2019

The U.S. Supreme Court this week officially pulled the plug on the Lanham Act’s prohibition on the registration of trademarks that comprise “immoral” or “scandalous” matter on First Amendment grounds. The prohibition, found...more

Scandalous Marks? Nothing the Proverbial Bar of Soap Can’t Fix

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP on 6/28/2019

Earlier this week the United States Supreme Court struck down a century-old provision in the Lanham Act that banned the registration of marks deemed “immoral” or “scandalous.” By a 6-3 vote, the Court found in Iancu v....more

Supreme Court Strikes Down Ban on "Immoral and Scandalous" Trademarks

McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP on 6/28/2019

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion in Iancu v. Brunetti, No. 18-302, finding that the Lanham Act prohibition against registration of scandalous or immoral trademarks violates the First Amendment of the U.S....more

Immoral & Scandalous Marks Survive

Fox Rothschild LLP on 6/28/2019

It’s old news by now, but the Supreme Court ruled earlier this week that the immoral and scandalous trademark ban set forth in Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act is unconstitutional under the First Amendment because it disfavors...more

U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Ban on "Immoral" or "Scandalous"

K&L Gates LLP on 6/28/2019

On June 24, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Iancu v. Brunetti that the Lanham Act’s prohibition on registration of “immoral” or “scandalous” trademarks violates the First Amendment....more

The First Amendment Wins Again: Supreme Court Holds “Immoral” and “Scandalous” Trademarks Are Registrable

Alston & Bird on 6/28/2019

Following its decision on The Slants two years ago, the Supreme Court again lands on the side of free speech in Iancu v. Brunetti. Our Intellectual Property – Trademark & Copyright Group discusses the case of the FUCT...more

Why the U.S. Supreme Court’s Decision to Allow Federal Registration of FUCT Impacts Everyday Businesses

Dickinson Wright on 6/28/2019

On June 24, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Iancu v Brunetti that prohibiting federal registration of “immoral or scandalous” marks violates the free speech provisions of the First Amendment. ...more

“F” Word Doesn’t Faze Supreme Court – Supreme Court Says USPTO Cannot Refuse To Grant Trademarks Merely Because They Contain...

McCarter & English, LLP on 6/28/2019

George Carlin famously observed that there are seven words you can’t say on TV. Erik Brunetti didn’t get the message and thus sought to register a trademark for a line of clothing called “FUCT.” The U.S. Patent and Trademark...more

Immoral and Scandalous Trademarks Are Registrable

Jones Day on 6/27/2019

Supreme Court rules that the Lanham Act's statutory bar against registering immoral or scandalous marks violates the First Amendment. On June 24, 2019, in Iancu v. Brunetti, 588 U.S. __ (2019), the U.S. Supreme Court...more

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First Amendment › Free Speech › Iancu v. Brunetti

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