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Ask a Lawyer -- LLCs
LLC Question 140
Question:
Want to start an community outreach center called Higher Expectations Outreach. There is already an LLC in this state called High Expectations without the outreach added. The name High Expectations is trademarked. Can we use the name Higher Expectations Outreach Center? Pat
Response: First question: would Oklahoma Secretary of State's office allow you to use the name "Higher Expectations Outreach, LLC"? There is an easy way to find out--attempt to reserve the name. Here is a link to the form used for this purpose.
Obviously, if the Secretary of State does not allow you to register the name, then the inquiry ends there. Second issue: if the Secretary of State allows you to register the entity name, does it somehow infringe on the trademarked name "Higher Expectations"? I'm not an intellectual properties attorney so I can give you no solid opinion on this. With that caveat, I do not believe the phrase "higher expectations" is trademarked. I searched the trademark database using the online tool from the Oklahoma Secretary of State's web site and it shows only "Expect a Higher Standard" as trademarked, not "higher expectations". If one searches the term "higher expectations" in the United States Patent and Trademark Office's online database for trademarks, only two results are returned: "FOR THOSE WITH HIGHER EXPECTATIONS" and "HIGHER EDUCATION. FOR ADULTS WITH HIGHER EXPECTATIONS".
Submitted: 10/24/2007; Patricia, Oklahoma
Response: 10/24/2007; JJR
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