1213.06 Entire Mark May Not Be Disclaimed
An entire mark may not be disclaimed. If a mark is not registrable as a whole, a disclaimer will not make it registrable. There must be something in the combination of elements in the mark, or something of sufficient substance or distinctiveness over and above the matter being disclaimed, that would make the composite registrable. See In re Sadoru Group, Ltd., 105 USPQ2d 1484 (TTAB 2012) (finding the stylization of SADORU does not create a separate and inherently distinctive commercial impression apart from the word itself); In re Carlson, 91 USPQ2d 1198, 1203 (TTAB 2009); In re Anchor Hocking Corp., 223 USPQ 85, 86 (TTAB 1984) (citing In re Carolyn’s Candies, Inc., 206 USPQ 356, 360 (TTAB 1980)); Ex parte Ste. Pierre Smirnoff Fls, Inc., 102 USPQ 415, 416 (Comm’r Pats. 1954). This includes marks that are comprised entirely of generic wording, and either the entire mark or some of the terms are the phonetic equivalent of the generic wording. Such marks cannot be disclaimed, even in the proper spelling, and approved for registration on the Supplemental Register. See TMEP §1209.01(c).
In Dena Corp. v. Belvedere Int’l Inc., 950 F.2d 1555, 1560, 21 USPQ2d 1047, 1051 (Fed. Cir. 1991), the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit stated as follows:
[U]nder traditional disclaimer practice, an applicant could not disclaim all elements of a composite mark. Section 1056(a) codified this policy. A mark which must be entirely disclaimed has no ‘unregistrable component,’ but is instead entirely nonregistrable. In other words, a mark which must be entirely disclaimed has no ‘otherwise registrable’ parts. Therefore, such marks do not qualify as composite marks for which the Commissioner may require a disclaimer.
See also In re MCI Commc’n Corp., 21 USPQ2d 1534, 1538 (Comm'r Pat. 1991).