Five Amicus Briefs in Support of Chestek PLLC Petition for Writ of Certiorari

Five amicus briefs have been submitted in support of the petition for writ of certiorari filed by Chestek PLLC [TTABlogged here], seeking Supreme Court review of the CAFC's decision [TTABlogged here] upholding the TTAB's affirmance [TTABlogged here] of a refusal to register the mark CHESTEK LEGAL for "legal services," based on Applicant Chestek PLLC's failure to provide its "domicile address." Chestek PLLC v. Vidal, No. 223-1217 (filed May 13, 2024), cert. denied (October 7, 2024). Pdfs of the amicus briefs may be found at the links below.

Readers will recall that the rule in question, requiring an applicant to state its domicile address, was adopted in 2019 so that the USPTO could require applicants outside the United States to retain an attorney inside the U.S. in order to reduce the number of fraudulent applications emanating from abroad. The issue here is whether this domicile address rule is merely procedural, or whether it is substantive and therefore required a notice-and-comment period before adoption by the USPTO.

• Cato Institute and Ethics and Public Policy Center: here.

• Bar Association for the District of Columbia: here.

• International Game Developers Association and Codemiko Project, LLC: here

• IEEE-USA: here.

• New Civil Liberties Alliance: here

Read comments and post your comment here.

TTABlogger comment: This domicile address requirement is referred to by some as the "where do you sleep at night?" rule.

Text Copyright John L. Welch 2024.