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ARTICLE · 27 DECEMBER 2022

Precedential No. 37: TTAB Rejects DC Comics Opposition: No Likely Confusion Or Dilution Vis-a-vis Superman "S-Shield" Marks

Wolf Greenfield & Sacks
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The Board [unsurprisingly, I think - ed.] tossed out this opposition to registration of the word-and-design mark shown immediately below, ...

United StatesIntellectual Property
John L. Welch
John L. Welch
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The Board [unsurprisingly, I think - ed.] tossed out this opposition to registration of the word-and-design mark shown immediately below, for "installation, maintenance and repair of cell phone related hardware," finding no likelihood of confusion with, and no likelihood of dilution of, several "'S' shield" marks associated with the "Superman" character. The Board found the marks, goods/services, and trade channels too different for purposes of likelihood of confusion, and as to the dilution claim it deemed the difference between the marks to be fatal. This blog post will attempt to hit the highlights of the 72-page opinion. DC Comics v. Cellular Nerd LLC, 2022 USPQ2d 1249 (TTAB 2022) [precedential] (Opinion by Judge Marc A. Bergsman).

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