Trademark Day 2020 - Track A Schedule

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Breakout Room Discussion Materials

Post Registration Audits

Updated Slides From Day 2

Trademark Day Roster

SCHEDULE A: New Trademark Practitioners 

Wednesday, September 9

All times listed in Eastern Standard Time (ET)

12:00 pm – 12:15 pm | Welcome

• Steven R. Berk, Group Director, Trademark Law Offices, USPTO, Trademark Day Planning Committee Chair

12:15 pm – 1:15 pm | Trademark Bootcamp

New to the process? Join the USPTO for an interactive “bootcamp” for those new to the field (or whom just need a refresher.) USPTO will share information on trademark basics such as navigating the e-filing system, responding to common Office Action refusals, and the nuts and bolts of how the USPTO searches for ‘confusingly similar’ trademarks.

Speakers:

• Drew Sander, Supervisory Senior Attorney, USPTO
• Richard White, Managing Attorney, USPTO

1:15 pm – 1:45 pm | BREAK

1:45 pm – 2:45 pm | What You Need to Know about Specimens
Hear from the USPTO about its criteria in examining specimens for trademarks and service marks. Receive a primer on rules relating to dates of first use, verifications and declarations.

Speakers:

• Megan Askew, Senior Supervisory Attorney, USPTO
• Jennifer Williston, Managing Attorney, USPTO

2:45 pm – 3:15 pm | BREAK

3:15 pm – 4:15 pm | Obtaining Registration in the United States Based on Foreign Rights

Get a primer and insider tips on prosecuting trademarks before the USPTO based on Lanham Act Sections 44 and 66(a).  Learn how to help your international clients obtain and maintain trademark registrations in the United States, the common pitfalls encountered with Sections 44 and 66(a), and how to overcome them.

Speakers:

• Nicholas Coleman, Senior Supervisory Attorney, USPTO
• Katy Halmen, Senior Supervisory Attorney, USPTO

4:15 pm – 4:30 pm | BREAK

4:30 pm – 5:30 pm | Breakout Room Discussions

• Best Practices in U.S. Searching
  Ryan M. Fountain, Law Offices of Ryan M. Fountain, Mishawaka, IN 
• Best Practices and Tips in Client Counseling on Likelihood of Confusion
  John Heinbockel, Seyfarth Shaw, LLP, New York, NY
• Alternative Fee Arrangements
  Matthew Asbell, Offit Kurman, P.A., New York, NY
• Strategies for responding to ID refusals for overseas applicants
  Christopher J. Schulte, Merchant & Gould P.C., Minneapolis, MN 
• Life After Registration: Client Counseling in Trademark Renewals and Maintenance
  Eric Perrott, Gerben Law Firm, Washington, DC 
• Best Practices in US New Filings (Tailored to newer practitioners)
  Tracy L. Deutmeyer, Fredrikson & Byron, P.A., Des Moines, IA
• TTAB Tips and Strategies
  Erik Pelton, Founder and Lead Attorney, Erik M. Pelton & Associates, PLLC, Falls Church, VA 

Thursday, September 10

All times listed in Eastern Standard Time (EST)

12:00 pm – 12:15 pm | Welcome

• Steven R. Berk, Group Director, Trademark Law Offices, USPTO, Trademark Day Planning Committee Chair

12:15 pm-12:30 pm | Keynote

The role of a Senior Trademark Advisor in the Office of the Under Secretary and Director at the USPTO.

Speaker:

• Kathleen Cooney-Porter, Senior Trademark Advisor, Office of the Under Secretary and Director, USPTO

12:30 pm – 1:15 pm | Post Registration Audits

Get an inside look as to how Post Registration Audits are conducted at the USPTO and learn how to prepare now for possible audit.

Speaker:

• Montia Givens Pressey, Supervisory Senior Attorney, USPTO

1:15 pm – 1:30 pm | BREAK

1:30 pm – 2:00 pm | State of the Trademark Office

Update regarding the operations of the Trademark Office, including, recent statistics, current fillings, and more. 

Speaker:

• David S. Gooder, Commissioner for Trademarks, USPTO

2:00 pm – 2:30 pm | State of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board

Update regarding the current happenings and operations of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board including current structure overview, recent fillings and more.

Speaker:

• Hon. Gerard F. Rogers, Chief Administrative Trademark Judge, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, USPTO

2:30 pm – 2:45 pm | BREAK

2:45 pm – 3:45 pm | Ethical Considerations for Trademark Practitioners

Listen to an analysis of ethical considerations in practitioners’ signing verifications or declarations; receive an update on certain proposed ethics rules for trademark practitioners, including those related to patterns of refused specimens; and hear about other ethical considerations for trademark practitioners.

Speaker:

• William Covey, Deputy General Counsel and Director for the Office of Enrollment and Discipline, USPTO

3:45 pm – 4:00 pm | BREAK

4:00 pm – 5:30 pm | TTAB Hearing

Prior to the hearing, a preview will be provided regarding the background and details of the TTAB Hearing. 

Speaker:

• Hon. Jonathan Hudis, Administrative Trademark Judge, Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, USPTO

Hearing Information: To Be Announced

Bringing the USPTO to You: Topics and Tips for New Trademark Practitioners Track (A)

• ABA-IPL Section Member:           $50.00
• ABA Member:                                   $75.00
• Non-Member:                                   $100.00
• Law Student:                                     $30.00 

For each track, the afternoon of Wednesday, September 9 will consist of the topic-specific track programming, followed by the Breakout Room Discussions, which are open to all attendees.  The afternoon of Thursday, September 10 will be the same programming for each track, plus the TTAB Hearing.   

MCLE Information 

For each “track” of the 2020 Virtual Trademark Days with the USPTO, the ABA will seek 7 hours of CLE credit in 60-minute states, and 8.4 hours of CLE credit for this program in 50-minute states, including 1.0 hours of CLE Ethics credit in 60-minute states and 1.2 hours of CLE Ethics credit in 50-minute states as needed. Credit hours are estimated and are subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules. Please visit the program website at https://ambar.org/ipltmday for program CLE details or visit www.americanbar.org/mcle for general information on CLE at the ABA.

Cancellation Policy 

Registrants who are unable to attend the Virtual Trademark Days with the USPTO events will receive a refund less a $25 administrative fee if a written cancellation is received 2 business days before the program -September 4, 2020 . Cancellation requests should be e-mailed to Abby Phillips, ABA-IPL Program Associate, at [email protected].  No refunds will be granted after September 4, 2020. Vouchers for future programs will not be provided. Proxy substitutions are acceptable. The ABA reserves the right to cancel any program and assumes no responsibility for personal expenses.