You represent a client with a successful new Spanish-style restaurant chain, called “Saffron.” You helped file a trademark application for the mark for restaurant services, and the Examining Attorney issued a 2(e)(1) refusal, noting that saffron is an ingredient in some of the dishes served at the restaurant and concluding that it is thus merely descriptive of the restaurant services. How do you push back?

One great way is to look at the responses of other applicants who dealt with very similar objections, and successfully overcame them. Go to “Search” and then the “Office Action” tab. We’re looking for active registrations in Class 43 on the Principal Register that faced a 2(e)(1) refusal where the Examiner focused on the “ingredient” issue. Your search will look something like the strategy below:

The search yields over 600 relevant documents; on the first page of results alone, we have registrations like RED CHERRY, YUZU SUSHI, LA TAGLIATELLA, PICKLED LEMON, RED MANGO, MARGARITA COMPANY, and more; the second page yields more great examples like AOILI (stylized), BLACK GARLIC, FILINI, BONE & BROTH, and more.

We searched for outgoing Office Actions to hone in on the Examiner’s concerns, but finding relevant responses is simply. Click “Documents” to get a full list of TSDR history, and just click into the next Office Action Response to see how the applicant addressed the issue.

If you find a good example you like, click the magnifying glass and select the “Text” option – you can copy and paste plain text from this document to get your own arguments started.

The next time you face an Office Action with a unique fact pattern, make sure to use TM TKO to kick start your research to find and build on proven successful responses!