B&B Hardware – District Courts Consider Impact On Both Trademark And Patent Litigation

In B&B Hardware v. Hargis Industries, the Supreme Court held that, under some circumstances, determinations by the USPTO Trademark Trial and Appeal Board could have preclusive effect in subsequent federal court litigation involving the identical issue. The possibility of a preclusive effect raises strategic concerns in both trademark and patent matters, since the Court's reasoning potentially applies equally to Patent Trial and Appeal Board determinations. Recently, two district courts addressed the practical impact of B&B Hardware and collateral estoppel in trademark and patent infringement litigation.

Practice Points

• In B&B Hardware, the Supreme Court held that a TTAB determination could have preclusive effect in subsequent federal court litigation if both proceedings involved substantially the same issue.