‘FUCT’ Case Opens Doors, but Brands May Still Walk the Line

Being able to trademark names like “FUCT” or “The Slants” is now the law of the land. But that doesn’t necessarily mean fashion brands and retailers will stampede to the U.S. Patent and Trademark office to register potentially offensive names.  In Iancu v. Brunetti, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday that trademark registrations cannot be disqualified for being “immoral or scandalous.” The case involved graphic designer Erik Brunetti’s FUCT clothing line that’s been in business since 1990, and it built on the high court’s 2017 decision in another case which effectively said the patent office can’t block “disparaging” trademarks. In that case, Matal v. Tam, the Asian-American rock band “The Slants” had sought to trademark the name, saying their point was to reclaim the racial slur.   These rulings together open the door to registering a variety of trademarks of four-letter words or sexual terms. But whether brands will leap at the chance isn’t just a matter of the law, but of intertwining cultural and business considerations — what trademarks have always been about, said intellectual property attorneys.   “We’re talking about a really narrow subset of brand owners that are probably looking to do this,” said Joel MacMull, a member of Mandelbaum Salsburg P.C.,

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