Trademark Trial and Appeal Board

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The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) is an administrative tribunal within the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) established in 1958. [1] [2] The TTAB is empowered to determine the right to register a trademark. It has no authority to determine the right to use one, nor broader questions of infringement, unfair competition, damages or injunctive relief. The TTAB decides ex parte appeals from decisions by USPTO Examiners denying registration of marks, and inter partes proceedings challenging the registration of marks. Decisions of the TTAB may be appealed to a United States district court, or to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Contents

Practices and procedures for litigating before the TTAB are governed by the Trademark Rules of Practice and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Manual of Procedure (TBMP) is an important guide to practice before the TTAB.

Judges of the TTAB

The Administrative Trademark Judges of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) are appointed by the United States Secretary of Commerce in consultation with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property. Each appeal and adversarial proceeding is heard and decided by at least three judges of the TTAB. There are currently twenty-four judges sitting at the TTAB (as of September 2025), as follows:

JudgeAppointedPrior professional experienceEducation
Christina J. Hieber (Acting Chief Administrative Trademark Judge)2025Senior Counsel for Trademark Policy and Litigation, USPTO Office of the Solicitor; Private Practice (Washington, DC)B.A., Dartmouth College; J.D., George Washington University Law School
Thomas V. Shaw (Deputy Chief Administrative Trademark Judge)2011Associate Solicitor, USPTO; Managing Attorney; Senior Attorney; Trademark Examining AttorneyB.A., George Washington University; J.D., University of Miami School of Law
Martha B. Allard 2021Private Practice (Nashville, TN)B.S., University of Kentucky; J.D. cum laude, Western New England University School of Law
Jessica D. Bradley 2024Private Practice; LexisNexisB.A. summa cum laude, George Washington University;J.D. cum laude, Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law
Elizabeth K. Brock 2024Private Practice (Michigan)B.A., University of Michigan; J.D., Wayne State University Law School
Thomas L. Casagrande 2023Law Clerk to Hon. B. Avant Edenfield, Chief U.S. District Judge (S.D. Ga.); Private Practice (Houston, TX; New Haven, CT); Associate Solicitor USPTOB.A., University of Pennsylvania; J.D. with Honors, University of Connecticut School of Law
Wendy B. Cohen 2023Private Practice; TTAB Interlocutory AttorneyB.A., University of Missouri - Columbia; J.D., University of Missouri School of Law
Elizabeth A. Dunn 2019Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory AttorneyB.A., Boston University; J.D., American University Washington College of Law
Jennifer L. Elgin 2023Private Practice; Corporate Counsel; TTAB Interlocutory AttorneyB.S., Cornell University; J.D., Emory University School of Law
Christen M. English 2019Private Practice; TTAB Interlocutory AttorneyB.A., Boston College; J.D., Columbus School of Law
Cheryl S. Goodman 2014Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory AttorneyB.A., University of Illinois; J.D., Florida State University College of Law
Cindy B. Greenbaum 2012Private Practice (New York, NY; Washington, DC); Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; TTAB Managing Interlocutory AttorneyB.S., Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania; J.D., New York University School of Law
David K. Heasley 2015Private Practice (Washington, DC)B.A., Johns Hopkins University; J.D., University of Maryland School of Law
Melanye K. Johnson 2020Private Practice (Detroit, MI; Washington, DC); Corporate Counsel; Senior Counsel, Office of General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)B.A., University of Michigan; J.D., Ohio State University Moritz College of Law
Christopher C. Larkin 2016Private Practice (Los Angeles, CA; New York, NY)B.A., Stanford University; J.D., Columbia University School of Law
Robert J. Lavache 2024Trademark Legal and Examination Policy Specialist; various other USPTO positionsB.A., University of Miami; J.D., Cornell Law School
Mark Lebow 2020Private Practice (Alexandria, VA)B.A., Florida Atlantic University; J.D., Hofstra University School of Law; LL.M. with high honors, John Marshall Law School
Angela G. Lykos 2010Trademark Examining Attorney; TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Private PracticeB.A., M.A., Johns Hopkins University; J.D., Duke University Law School
Mary Beth Myles 2024TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Private PracticeB.A. Bethany College; J.D., Columbia University School of Law
Catherine Dugan O'Connor 2024Law clerk to Hon. Denny Chin (SDNY); Private practiceB.A. cum laude, University of Connecticut; J.D. summa cum laude, St. John's University School of Law
George C. Pologeorgis 2015TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; TTAB Attorney in the Office of Trademark Quality Review and Training; Trademark Examining Attorney; Private PracticeB.A. University of Pennsylvania; J.D., George Washington University National Law Center
Lawrence T. Stanley, Jr. 2024Private Practice; TTAB Interlocutory AttorneyB.A., Indiana University; J.D. summa cum laude, New England School of Law
Mark A. Thurmon 2019Private practice; adjunct professor of law, University of Texas School of Law; assistant professor of law, Levin College of Law; professor of law, Southern University Law Center; former Deputy Chief Administrative Trademark JudgeB.S, Louisiana State University; J.D. with high honors, Duke University School of Law
Thomas W. Wellington 2007TTAB Interlocutory Attorney; Trademark Examining Attorney; Private PracticeB.A., University of Maryland at College Park; J.D., American University Washington College of Law

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Trademark Trial and Appeal Board". www.uspto.gov. Retrieved 2025-04-22.
  2. ↑ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 2025-09-01. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
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