
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 15USC1091]

 
                      TITLE 15--COMMERCE AND TRADE
 
                         CHAPTER 22--TRADEMARKS
 
                SUBCHAPTER II--THE SUPPLEMENTAL REGISTER
 
Sec. 1091. Supplemental register


(a) Marks registerable

    In addition to the principal register, the Director shall keep a 
continuation of the register provided in paragraph (b) of section 1 of 
the Act of March 19, 1920, entitled ``An Act to give effect to certain 
provisions of the convention for the protection of trademarks and 
commercial names, made and signed in the city of Buenos Aires, in the 
Argentine Republic, August 20, 1910, and for other purposes'', to be 
called the supplemental register. All marks capable of distinguishing 
applicant's goods or services and not registrable on the principal 
register provided in this chapter, except those declared to be 
unregistrable under subsections (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e)(3) of 
section 1052 of this title, which are in lawful use in commerce by the 
owner thereof, on or in connection with any goods or services may be 
registered on the supplemental register upon the payment of the 
prescribed fee and compliance with the provisions of subsections (a) and 
(e) of section 1051 of this title so far as they are applicable. Nothing 
in this section shall prevent the registration on the supplemental 
register of a mark, capable of distinguishing the applicant's goods or 
services and not registrable on the principal register under this 
chapter, that is declared to be unregistrable under section 1052(e)(3) 
of this title, if such mark has been in lawful use in commerce by the 
owner thereof, on or in connection with any goods or services, since 
before December 8, 1993.

(b) Application and proceedings for registration

    Upon the filing of an application for registration on the 
supplemental register and payment of the prescribed fee the Director 
shall refer the application to the examiner in charge of the 
registration of marks, who shall cause an examination to be made and if 
on such examination it shall appear that the applicant is entitled to 
registration, the registration shall be granted. If the applicant is 
found not entitled to registration the provisions of subsection (b) of 
section 1062 of this title shall apply.

(c) Nature of mark

    For the purposes of registration on the supplemental register, a 
mark may consist of any trademark, symbol, label, package, configuration 
of goods, name, word, slogan, phrase, surname, geographical name, 
numeral,,\1\ device, any matter that as a whole is not functional, or 
any combination of any of the foregoing, but such mark must be capable 
of distinguishing the applicant's goods or services.
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    \1\ So in original.
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(July 5, 1946, ch. 540, title II, Sec. 23, 60 Stat. 435; Pub. L. 87-772, 
Sec. 13, Oct. 9, 1962, 76 Stat. 773; Pub. L. 100-667, title I, Sec. 121, 
Nov. 16, 1988, 102 Stat. 3942; Pub. L. 103-182, title III, Sec. 333(b), 
Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2114; Pub. L. 105-330, title II, Sec. 201(a)(5), 
Oct. 30, 1998, 112 Stat. 3070; Pub. L. 106-43, Sec. 6(b), Aug. 5, 1999, 
113 Stat. 220; Pub. L. 106-113, div. B, Sec. 1000(a)(9) [title IV, 
Sec. 4732(b)(1)(B)], Nov. 29, 1999, 113 Stat. 1536, 1501A-583.)

                       References in Text

    Paragraph (b) of section 1 of the Act of March 19, 1920, referred to 
in subsec. (a), is paragraph (b) of section 1 of act Mar. 19, 1920, ch. 
104, 41 Stat. 533, which was classified to section 121(b) of this title, 
and repealed by act July 5, 1946, ch. 540, Sec. 46(a), 60 Stat. 444, 
insofar as inconsistent.


                            Prior Provisions

    Acts Mar. 19, 1920, ch. 104, Sec. 1, 41 Stat. 533; Apr. 11, 1930, 
ch. 132, Sec. 4, 46 Stat. 155; June 10, 1938, ch. 332, Sec. 2, 52 Stat. 
638.


                               Amendments

    1999--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 106-113 substituted ``Director'' for 
``Commissioner''.
    Pub. L. 106-43 substituted ``trademarks'' for ``trade-marks''.
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 106-113 substituted ``Director'' for 
``Commissioner''.
    1998--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 105-330 substituted ``, device, any 
matter that as a whole is not functional,'' for ``or device''.
    1993--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-182 substituted ``(d), and (e)(3)'' 
for ``and (d)'' and inserted at end ``Nothing in this section shall 
prevent the registration on the supplemental register of a mark, capable 
of distinguishing the applicant's goods or services and not registrable 
on the principal register under this chapter, that is declared to be 
unregistrable under section 1052(e)(3) of this title, if such mark has 
been in lawful use in commerce by the owner thereof, on or in connection 
with any goods or services, since before December 8, 1993.''
    1988--Pub. L. 100-667, Sec. 121(6), struck out undesignated 
concluding par. which read as follows: ``Upon a proper showing by the 
applicant that he requires domestic registration as a basis for foreign 
protection of his mark, the Commissioner may waive the requirement of a 
full year's use and may grant registration forthwith.''
    Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 100-667, Sec. 121(1), (4), designated first 
par. as subsec. (a), made technical amendment to reference in the 
original act to subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of section 1052 of 
this title resulting in no change in text, substituted ``are in lawful 
use in commerce by the owner thereof, on'' for ``have been in lawful use 
in commerce by the proprietor thereof, upon'', struck out ``for the year 
preceding the filing of the application'' after ``any goods and 
services'', and inserted ``subsections (a) and (e) of'' before ``section 
1051''.
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 100-667, Sec. 121(2), (5), designated second 
par. as subsec. (b) and substituted ``prescribed fee'' for ``fee herein 
provided''.
    Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 100-667, Sec. 121(3), designated third par. as 
subsec. (c).
    1962--Pub. L. 87-772 struck out ``has begun the lawful use of his 
mark in foreign commerce and that he'' before ``requires domestic 
registration'' in last par.


                    Effective Date of 1999 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 106-113 effective 4 months after Nov. 29, 1999, 
see section 1000(a)(9) [title IV, Sec. 4731] of Pub. L. 106-113, set out 
as a note under section 1 of Title 35, Patents.


                    Effective Date of 1998 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 105-330 effective Oct. 30, 1998, and applicable 
only to any civil action filed or proceeding before the United States 
Patent and Trademark Office commenced on or after such date relating to 
the registration of a mark, see section 201(b) of Pub. L. 105-330, set 
out as a note under section 1051 of this title.


                    Effective Date of 1993 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 103-182 applicable only to trademark 
applications filed on or after Dec. 8, 1993, see section 335(c) of Pub. 
L. 103-182, set out in a note under section 1052 of this title.


                    Effective Date of 1988 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 100-667 effective one year after Nov. 16, 1988, 
see section 136 of Pub. L. 100-667, set out as a note under section 1051 
of this title.


                  Repeal and Effect on Existing Rights

    Repeal of inconsistent provisions, effect of this chapter on pending 
proceedings and existing registrations and rights under prior acts, see 
notes set out under section 1051 of this title.

                          Transfer of Functions

    For transfer of functions of other officers, employees, and agencies 
of Department of Commerce, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of 
Commerce, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 5 of 1950, 
Secs. 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1263, set out in 
the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 1126 of this title.
