TTAB Update: The Doctrine of Foreign Equivalents

The TTAB recently reversed a 2(d) refusal of the marks DARK HORSE and DARK HORSE DISTILLERY for distilled spirits and spirits distillery services, finding no likelihood of confusion with four registered marks owned by the same entity for the marks KUROUMA, KUROUMA & Design, and two non-Latin character marks that translate to Kurouma in Japanese. Applying the doctrine of foreign equivalents, the Examining Attorney had relied only on the statement made in the registered mark that the term “Kurouma” translates to “dark horse,” and that the Japanese characters also transliterate to “Kurouma,” which in turn, translates to “dark horse.” The Board, however, agreed with the Applicant that the doctrine of foreign equivalents did not apply absent a “single, literal and direct” translation of “Kurouma” or the Japanese characters to “dark horse.” Applicant established that other relevant translations existed, such as black horse, evil horse, black animal, or evil animal. Further, the Examining Attorney’s reliance on the Registrant’s statement was improper, because such statement was not proof of the truth of the matter asserted.

Source: http://thettablog.blogspot.com/

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