Traditional trademark clearance searches require hours of manual database queries across USPTO TESS, state registries, and common law sources. Attorneys spend valuable billable time compiling results, cross-referencing similar marks, and analyzing likelihood of confusion factors—a process that's both time-intensive and prone to oversight when juggling multiple databases.
Trademark clearance searches require exhaustive review of federal databases, state registries, common law sources, and international records—a process that traditionally takes attorneys 6-8 hours per mark. Manual analysis of phonetic equivalents, design codes, and likelihood of confusion across multiple jurisdictions is time-consuming and prone to inconsistency. Clients need rapid turnaround for business decisions, but thorough clearance analysis cannot be rushed without risking costly conflicts.
CaseMark automates the entire trademark clearance process, systematically searching USPTO TESS, state registries, common law sources, and international databases in minutes. The AI applies multi-factor likelihood of confusion analysis to every identified mark, evaluating similarity, relatedness of goods/services, and mark strength with consistent legal reasoning. Attorneys receive a comprehensive, professionally formatted report with clear risk assessments and strategic recommendations ready for client delivery.
This workflow is applicable across multiple practice areas and use cases
Trademark licensing agreements require clearance searches to verify the licensor has clear rights to the mark and to assess potential infringement risks before entering licensing arrangements.
IP licensing attorneys must confirm trademark availability and assess conflict risks to protect both licensors and licensees from future infringement claims or licensing disputes.
M&A transactions require comprehensive trademark clearance searches to assess IP assets, identify potential conflicts, and evaluate brand portfolio risks before acquisition or merger completion.
Due diligence in M&A deals heavily involves trademark portfolio analysis to value IP assets and identify liabilities that could affect deal terms or post-closing integration.
New business formation requires trademark clearance searches to ensure proposed company names and brands don't infringe existing marks before filing formation documents and investing in branding.
Corporate formation attorneys routinely advise clients on name selection and brand protection, making trademark clearance an essential early step in the business formation process.
Franchise agreements depend on strong, protectable trademarks; clearance searches verify the franchisor's marks are registrable and don't conflict with existing marks in expansion territories.
Franchise attorneys must ensure trademark rights are secure across multiple jurisdictions before franchisees invest in the brand, making comprehensive clearance searches critical to franchise development.
Corporate counsel managing brand portfolios need regular trademark clearance searches for new product launches, rebranding initiatives, and expansion into new markets or jurisdictions.
In-house corporate attorneys routinely conduct trademark clearance as part of brand management, product development, and market expansion strategies to protect company IP assets.
CaseMark conducts the same multi-source search that experienced trademark attorneys perform manually. The analysis covers USPTO TESS database (including phonetic equivalents and design codes), state trademark registries in relevant jurisdictions, common law sources (internet searches, business directories, domain registrations), and international databases when applicable. The AI systematically identifies potentially conflicting marks across all sources and applies the full likelihood of confusion analysis to each conflict.
CaseMark applies the same multi-factor legal test that attorneys use, evaluating mark similarity (appearance, sound, meaning), relatedness of goods/services, mark strength, consumer sophistication, and other relevant factors. The AI provides consistent, thorough analysis across all identified conflicts with clear explanations of the legal reasoning. Attorneys maintain full control to review the analysis, adjust risk assessments based on case-specific factors, and add strategic insights before client delivery.
You need to provide the proposed trademark (exact representation), the goods and/or services it will cover, relevant Nice Classification codes, and the geographic scope of intended use. Optionally, you can upload preliminary search results from USPTO, state registries, or common law sources to enhance the analysis. CaseMark can work with minimal input and conduct comprehensive searches, or incorporate your existing research for a more targeted report.
When international protection is relevant, CaseMark searches the WIPO Global Brand Database, EU Intellectual Property Office databases, and can incorporate results from specific national registries you provide. The report analyzes international conflicts under applicable legal standards, including Madrid Protocol registrations and regional systems like the EU trademark. The analysis addresses how foreign marks might affect U.S. registration and identifies obstacles to international expansion in target jurisdictions.
Based on the conflict analysis, CaseMark provides clear strategic recommendations: proceed with filing if clearance is favorable, modify the mark or narrow goods/services if moderate conflicts exist, pursue coexistence agreements where appropriate, or select an alternative mark if substantial conflicts make adoption inadvisable. The report includes procedural next steps such as filing strategy, watching service implementation, and protocols for establishing strong rights through consistent use.