Fed Circuit Leaves 'Reckless Disregard' TM Question Open

The latest ruling from the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit leaves a lot to question regarding whether reckless disregard is enough to prove trademark fraud by the USPTO. In mid-October, the Federal Circuit decided that the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board was not authorized to cancel registration based on a fraudulent Section 15 declaration. This ruling reversed a 2021 TTAB decision. The case is Great Concepts v. Chutter.

Finnegan partner Chip Rettew told Managing Intellectual Property that the ruling isn’t surprising.

He said a lot of people were anticipating that the Federal Circuit would give more guidance as to what exactly reckless disregard entails.

“We’ll have to wait another day to get more clarity,” he says.

Chip expects that parties will continue to allege that others have committed fraud at the USPTO.

“Eventually there will be more guidance on what reckless disregard is,” he says.

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