Petition for Cancellation
(No Bona Fide Use or Intent to Use Mark in Commerce, Abandonment) (TTAB)

Summary

This template Petition for Cancellation can be used to initiate a cancellation proceeding before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). It alleges that the registrant's mark was not in bona fide use in commerce (or lacked a bona fide intent to use) and/or has been abandoned due to non-use. This template includes practical guidance, drafting notes, and alternate and optional clauses. A mark must be in bona fide use in commerce either at the time of filing a use-based application or for an intent-to-use application by the expiration of the deadline for filing a statement of use (or any extension thereof). See, Gilson on Trademarks § 9.03[2][c][iii]. Additionally, for intent-to-use applications there must also be a bona fide intent to use the mark at the time the application is filed. See, Gilson on Trademarks § 9.03[2][g]. Separately, where a registrant does not make use of its mark for a period of three years, such non-use constitutes prima facie evidence of abandonment of the mark, subjecting it to potential cancellation. See Gilson on Trademarks § 9.03[2][c][iv]. Petitions to cancel must be filed electronically with the TTAB through the USPTO's Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals (ESTTA), absent extraordinary circumstances or the unavailability of ESTTA due to technical problems. 37 C.F.R. § 2.111(c). A petitioner may seek to cancel a registration based on abandonment at any time. 15 U.S.C. § 1064(3). However, when the asserted ground is non-use, it may only seek cancellation within five years after the mark's registration. 15 U.S.C. § 1064(1). For guidance on cancellation proceedings, see TTAB Litigation: Cancellation Proceedings and TTAB Litigation: Procedural Considerations. For summaries of precedential TTAB decisions on the issue of abandonment, see TTAB Decision Tracker: Abandonment. For summaries of precedential TTAB decisions on the issue of non-use, see TTAB Decision Tracker: No Bona Fide Use or Intent to Use Mark in Commerce. For additional resources on trademark enforcement, see Trademark Enforcement Resource Kit.