a
dead or
abandoned status for a trademark application means that specific
application is no
longer under prosecution within the USPTO, and would not be used as a bar against your filing.
It does
not necessarily mean that there are not other marks that the trademark
examining attorney would cite. It is also possible to revive an abandoned application
(for example, if the USPTO declared the application abandoned for failure of the applicant to respond to an
Office action, but the applicant later proved that a response was sent and the
USPTO simply failed to match it with the file in a timely manner, then the case could be revived).
Also, regardless of the status of an application within the USPTO, the owner may still claim
common law rights, i.e, the mark may still be in use in commerce.
Context: Trademark
