During a naming project, all company or product names we present to clients — after the proof-of-concept names in the Brand Positioning brief — are prescreened* by us, at minimum, in the USPTO trademark database and via a Google due diligence (common law) prescreen*. (*So-called because our screens are preliminary to those that a trademark attorney will conduct for the top name or names after our project has concluded.) Depending upon the requirements of your project, we may also prescreen names in the CTM, WIPO (Madrid Protocol), or other global trademark or specialty databases.
We do this in order to feel confident that the names your attorney submits for final trademark screening and application are at least likely to pass muster for registration. If not, valuable time is lost.
Here is a handy list of trademark and other search sources:
- USPTO
- CTM
- WIPO Madrid Protocol
- UK Trademark Search
- CIPO (Canada) Trademark Search
- Australian Trademark Search
- India Trademark Search
- US Medline Plus Drug Information Database
- Greenbook Chemical Database
Here are some good information sources regarding trademarks:
For everything else you ever wanted to know about trademarks but were afraid to ask, check out The Trademark Blog, written by Zinzin’s very own most excellent trademark attorney, Martin Schwimmer. We have sent to Marty many of our clients that were in need of a great trademark attorney, with stellar results.