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Full-Text Articles in Law

Commentary: Authority Of The Commissioner Over The Board Of Patent Appeals And Interferences, R. Carl Moy Jan 1994

Commentary: Authority Of The Commissioner Over The Board Of Patent Appeals And Interferences, R. Carl Moy

Faculty Scholarship

On August 3, 1992, the United States Patent and Trademark Office published a notice in the Federal Register requesting public comments on the PTO's appeal procedures. Taken in context, then, the notice can be fairly said to raise the issue whether, under the existing statute, the Board is subservient to the Commissioner. It also raises the broader question of whether such a subservient arrangement is desirable or, alternatively, whether the statute should be modified if necessary to give the Board decisional independence from the Commissioner. This Commentary is directed primarily to this latter point. In summary, it concludes that the …


The Unnatural Expansion Of Trademark Rights: Is A Federal Dilution Statute Necessary?, Kenneth L. Port Jan 1994

The Unnatural Expansion Of Trademark Rights: Is A Federal Dilution Statute Necessary?, Kenneth L. Port

Faculty Scholarship

This article is a systematic review of proposed section 43(c ). Proposed section 43(c ) would create a federal cause of action for trademark dilution and would grossly expand trademark rights. The article reviews both the practical implications and theoretical underpinnings of the dilution concept. Part II describes the basic origins and history of the dilution debate. Part IV(A) presents the practical problems that proposed section 43(c ) raises. Part IV(B) critiques some of the more popular theoretical justifications that are typically used to support granting intellectual property rights and concludes that no satisfactory theoretical justification exists to warrant an …