Geography & Trademark Law

Some trademark owners who wish to use geographical terms in their marks may meet some registration hurdles, as well as resistance from other trademark holders with the same idea. Using geographical terms is tightly regulated by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, and can only be done in certain circumstances.

You are most likely to be able to use a geographical term in a trademark if it is considered a geographical indicator. This term is used to designate products that have special characteristics due to the place they are from. Fine food enthusiasts refer to these location-specific characteristics as terroir. Producers of such products as Champagne from the Champagne region of France, oranges from Florida, apples from Washington state, and blue cheese from Roquefort, France, want you to believe that their products are special because of the special conditions where they are produced. Despite whether or not you believe this to be true, there does exist protection for these geographical indicators. France’s AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) system is one of the most familiar. Producers in geographical areas who wish to obtain AOC-eligible products must meet rigorous production standards. The French model has led to the creation of similar systems in other countries such as Spain (Demonación de Origen), the United States (American Viticultural Areas), and, on a broader scale, Protected Geographical Status in the European Union.

In the United States, Geographical Indicators receive the same amount of protection as trademarks, and are administrated by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

If you are a business owner and you want to use a geographical term such as your city, or even an exotic place you’ve never been to, then be cautious. The U.S. Patent & Trademark Office will refuse a trademark application it finds is geographically descriptive or geographically misdescriptive. Geographically descriptive marks, which merely state the origin of a product without alluding to any link between the quality of the product and the place, are refused to allow other parties to use the same geographical location in their marks. Geographically misdescriptive marks indicate a location other than the origin of the goods. The U.S. Patent & Trademark finds these types of marks could confuse consumers into believing the goods do come from the stated location.

If you have a question related to trademark applications with or without geographic names, then please contact Special Counsel, Veronique Kherian at vkherian@higagipsonllp.com or at (415) 692-6520 Ext. 109.