TTAB Refused a Trademark Application as “Applicant’s Goods Contain Cannabidiol”
No matter how many medicinal properties it dwells, marijuana is always viewed in a negative light. After a struggle of decades, medicinal marijuana acquired legal acceptance in numerous nations. Besides the basic health benefits, the acceptance came after the cannabidiol greatly improved Charlotte Figi’s health. Figi suffered from hundreds of seizures every week. At the age of 6, her mother fed her some CBD marijuana oil (now known as Charlotte’s Web) and surprisingly, the number of seizures went down from 300 to 3. Not only the story gained international media attention but successfully became the foundation stone of international medicinal marijuana movement.
That was history. At present a Colorado-based company named Charlotte’s Web is engaged in manufacturing and sales of marijuana edibles and dietary products containing high-cannabidiol (CBD) and low-tetrahydrocannabiniol (THC) cannabis strains. In the admiration for Figi, Charlotte’s Web was founded by the Stanley Brothers. The marijuana products sold by the company are guaranteed to contain less than 0.3% THC benefitting persons suffering from cancer, glaucoma, AIDS, muscle spasms, seizures, etc. Now, the company wants to register the initials “CW”. Did the U.S Trademark Authorities allow it? The answer is NO.
According to the trademark application, the mark “CW” is to be used in connection of goods including dietary and nutritional supplements containing hemp oil extracts, which in the view of U.S. Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) violates of Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act. TTAB further noted that even the Industrial Hemp Provision of 2018 only permits to “grow and cultivate industrial hemp” and not the sale or distribution of CBD foods.
While arguing upon the same, Charlotte’s Web said that the company does not violate FDCA regulations since it deals in CBD dietary supplements and not CBD as “food”. Much to their shock, this claim was rejected by TTAB on the ground that the company explains hemp oil extracts as “an integral component of dietary and nutritional supplements” which, by all means, stands intra vires the Act. “A dietary supplement shall be deemed to be a food within the meaning of this Chapter”, observed the Board.
After multiple hearings and arguments, the application was rejected by TTAB. The Board ruled, “The record shows that Applicant’s goods contain cannabidiol (CBD), an extract of the cannabis plant, that is regulated under the Food, Drug & Cosmetics Act (FDCA) as a drug,” and hence, the mark cannot be registered.
The decision not only hit the soft-spot of critics but also made them question the FDA. A renowned advocate and partner in Arnall Golden Gregory LLP, Richard Oparil extended his disagreement by commenting, “The decision, combined with the FDA’s failure to address a mechanism for CBD to be lawfully sold as a slupplement or food under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act is significant. While the FDA has repeatedly said that CBD cannot be lawfully sold, it has also said that it would look the other way unless a product has safety issues or sold as a drug.”
