Legal Definitions - Supplemental Register

The Supplemental Register is a secondary register maintained by the USPTO for trademarks that do not qualify for the Principal Register because they are not yet distinctive enough to be associated with a specific source (i.e., they lack secondary meaning). It offers limited trademark rights, such as the ability to use the ® symbol and register internationally, for these less distinctive marks.

The Supplemental Register is a secondary listing for trademarks maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The USPTO is the federal agency responsible for granting U.S. patents and registering trademarks. Marks placed on the Supplemental Register do not yet meet the stricter requirements for the Principal Register, primarily because they are considered "non-distinctive." This means that, at the time of application, consumers do not immediately associate these terms, names, or phrases with a specific company or source of goods/services (they lack what is called "secondary meaning").

Common types of marks found on the Supplemental Register include:

• Descriptive marks: Words that directly describe a feature, quality, or characteristic of the goods or services.
• Surnames: Personal last names used as a brand.
• Geographical terms: Names of places used in connection with goods or services from that location.

While offering more limited protections than the Principal Register, the Supplemental Register still provides several important benefits:

• It allows the owner to use the federal registration symbol (®) with their mark, signaling to others that the mark is registered and potentially deterring infringement.
• It can serve as a basis for seeking trademark registration in other countries.
• It provides a legal foundation for pursuing claims of trademark infringement, allowing the owner to seek remedies like monetary damages or injunctions if their mark is unlawfully used by others.
• It can be a stepping stone: if a mark on the Supplemental Register eventually acquires "secondary meaning" (i.e., consumers come to associate it exclusively with a particular source), it may then qualify for transfer to the Principal Register.

Here are some examples illustrating how marks might be placed on the Supplemental Register:

• Example 1: Descriptive Mark for a Cleaning Service
  A new cleaning company wants to trademark the name "SparkleClean" for its residential and commercial cleaning services. The word "SparkleClean" directly describes the desired outcome of a cleaning service – making things sparkle and clean. Because it is highly descriptive of the service itself, it is initially considered non-distinctive and would likely be placed on the Supplemental Register. Over time, if the company heavily advertises and builds a reputation such that customers exclusively associate "SparkleClean" with *their specific* cleaning business, it might then gain secondary meaning and qualify for the Principal Register.

• Example 2: Surname for a Financial Advisory Firm
  A financial advisor named Ms. Chen starts her own firm and wants to trademark "Chen Wealth Management." Since "Chen" is a common surname, the USPTO would likely consider it non-distinctive as a trademark on its own. It would be placed on the Supplemental Register. To move it to the Principal Register, Ms. Chen would need to demonstrate that her firm has operated long enough and gained sufficient recognition that the public primarily identifies "Chen Wealth Management" specifically with *her* unique financial services, rather than just any business run by someone named Chen.

• Example 3: Geographical Term for a Coffee Brand
  A company sourcing coffee beans from a well-known coffee-growing region in South America wants to trademark "Andean Peak Coffee." The term "Andean Peak" directly refers to the geographical origin of the coffee. Because it describes where the product comes from, it is initially considered non-distinctive for coffee products. The mark would likely be registered on the Supplemental Register. If the company invests significantly in branding and marketing, and consumers eventually come to understand "Andean Peak Coffee" as referring exclusively to *their specific brand* of coffee, regardless of its origin, it could then potentially achieve secondary meaning and be moved to the Principal Register.