TTAB KO's Mayweather PAST PRESENT FUTURE Trademark Application

Mayweather Promotions is the promotional company for Floyd Mayweather Jr., former professional boxer, multiple-time world champion, and holder of an undefeated 50-0 record in the ring.  Yet, before the United States Patent and Trademark Office's ("USPTO") Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ("TTAB"), Mayweather's company does not have a record to match its namesake.  In In re Mayweather Promotions, LLC, the TTAB issued a precedential decision affirming the refusal to register the mark PAST PRESENT FUTURE for use on t-shirts on the ground that the applied-for mark is merely a commonplace expression that consumers identify with a particular sentiment rather than a particular source.

Mayweather Promotions ("MP") attempted to register PAST PRESENT FUTURE for use on t-shirts.  The USPTO Examining Attorney refused registration on the ground that the applied-for mark is a widely used expression that serves to communicate a sentiment rather than identify the source of the