Examining attorney
The USPTO lawyer who reviews your application.
A government attorney assigned to examine your application against the rules and the existing register. They can approve it, or issue an Office Action raising refusals or requirements. They are not your adversary, but they are not on your side either.
Why it matters to your application
A government lawyer whose job is to apply the rules to your application, not to help it succeed. They are not your adversary and they are not your advisor - which is exactly why an application is examined more harshly than most self-filers expect.
In order
- Find who is assigned to your application in TSDR once examination begins.
- Read any office action as a legal document, not a form letter. The specific objections are what you have to answer.
- Answer every point raised. A response that addresses two of three objections leaves the third outstanding.
- Keep correspondence professional and on the record. Examiners decide a great many applications and respond to clear argument.
How this plays out
An applicant answers the likelihood-of-confusion refusal in detail and ignores the specimen requirement mentioned further down. The next letter is a final refusal - not on the argument they prepared, but on the point they skipped.
About examining attorney
Can I speak to the examining attorney?
Yes. Examiners can often be reached by phone or email, and minor requirements are sometimes resolved that way. Substantive refusals still need a written response.
Is the examiner trying to reject my application?
No. They are applying the statute and comparing your mark against the register. Many objections are routine requirements rather than attacks on the brand.
Can I appeal an examiner's decision?
Yes, to the TTAB, after a final refusal. That is a more formal and more expensive route than resolving the point during examination.
General information about USPTO procedure, not legal advice about your situation. Always confirm the status and deadlines on your own application in USPTO TSDR.
Others you will meet at this stage
Allegation of use
Proof you have started actually selling under the mark.
FilingApplicant
The person or business that will own the registration.
FilingBasis for filing
Why you are entitled to file: you use it, or you intend to.
FilingClass
The category your goods or services fall into. Fees are per class.
Filing