Washington Law Review Volume 96 Number 2 6-1-2021 Bully No More: Why Trademark Owners Engage in Trademark Overreach and How to Prevent It Quynh La Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wlr Part of the Consumer Protection Law Commons, Intellectual Property Law Commons, and the Law and Economics Commons Recommended Citation Quynh La, Bully No More: Why Trademark Owners Engage in Trademark Overreach and How to Prevent It, 96 Wash. L. Rev. 667 (2021). This Comment is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Reviews and Journals at UW Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Washington Law Review by an authorized editor of UW Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. La (Do Not Delete) 6/10/21 11:02 AM BULLY NO MORE: WHY TRADEMARK OWNERS ENGAGE IN TRADEMARK OVERREACH AND HOW TO PREVENT IT Quynh La* Abstract: At its core, trademark law exists as a tool for consumer protection. Thus, trademark owners use policing and enforcement to maintain a trademark’s goodwill, which in turn protects consumers from confusion. But policing and enforcement can lead to trademark overreach and bullying—which undermine the goal of trademark law. This Comment explains that trademark owners are incentivized to engage in aggressive enforcement tactics because courts weigh enforcement efforts in favor of trademark strength. And strong trademarks receive strong protection because such marks are more likely to succeed in trademark infringement litigation. To curb trademark bullying and realign trademark law with its consumer protection purpose, this Comment argues that courts assessing trademark strength should focus on evidence of marketing strategies and consumer perception rather than trademark enforcement.