Patent and Trademark Glossary

The federal Patent and Trademark Office has an online glossary of legal terms. I find this interesting on several levels. Mark it down as a useful too.

Glossary

An alphabetized, hyperlinked glossary of terms used on the USPTO web site and a continual "work in progress"- suggest terms for the glossary to the webmaster@uspto.gov (Note - plain links go to related definitions on this page, italicized links go to supplemental materials on the website.)

From what I have seen, our tax dollars were put to good use. Take this definition of "abandonment" as an example. Notice the use of hyperlinks making this not a dead-end for research but part of a vital system. Also, it is rather well written.

A trademark application that has been declared abandoned is "dead" and no longer pending. Abandonment occurs under several circumstances. The most common reason is when the USPTO does not receive a response to an Office Action letter from an applicant within 6 months from the date the Office action letter was mailed. Another instance is when the USPTO does not receive a Statement of Use (or request for an extension of time to file a statement of use) from an applicant within 6 months from the issuance of a Notice of Allowance). Applications abandoned for failure to respond to an Office Action or a Notice of Allowance can be revived or reinstated in certain circumstances. For more information, see Petition to Revive and Request for Reinstatement.