W. Clay Mackey (“Opposer”), owner of the registered mark CHINOOK, for table wine, sparkling wine and beer, filed an opposition against Lawson’s Finest Liquids, LLC (“Applicant”) federal trademark application for CHINOOKER’D IPA, for beer. On December 7, 2020, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (“TTAB”) canceled the Opposer’s registration of CHINOOK for beer on the ground of abandonment and concluded that “CHINOOKER’D IPA for beer is not likely to cause confusion with Opposer’s registration for CHINOOK for table wine and sparkling wine.” This TTAB trademark decision is inconsistent with other rulings finding that beer and wine are related products that can cause confusion when the marks are similar or identical to one another.
Why did the TTAB find that there was no confusion?
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