The Trademark Modernization Act of 2020
- January 14, 2021
- Blog

The Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 became law on December 27, 2020. This new law ushered in uniform procedures in many facets of trademark litigation, but none more so than ex parte cancellation proceedings. In an effort to reduce bad faith filings and clutter, any petitioner may now file a petition to cancel an unused trademark regardless of that petitioner’s standing. Petitioners may achieve cancellation via an Ex Parte Expungement or Ex Parte Reexamination against unused trademarks. In addition to standardizing and modifying trademark cancellation procedures, the new law establishes a rebuttable presumption of irreparable harm for plaintiffs seeking injunctive relief, formalizes the procedure for submitting a Letter of Protest in a pending application, and allows for more flexible response periods. To learn more about the Trademark Modernization Act of 2020 and its nuances, check out this detailed article by Mintz Levin.