markanswer

The USPTO refused your trademark. You have three months, and nobody will tell you whether this is normal.

You filed the application yourself. The office action runs six pages and the sentence that matters is buried on page two. Every search result is a law firm asking you to book a call. markanswer tells you what your specific refusal decides, works out the real deadline from the date printed on your document, and drafts the response in your own words — with a plain statement under every argument of where it is weak, and which arguments you are not yet entitled to make. You read it, correct it, sign it, and file it yourself.

Read a complete response — free →What does my refusal mean? →Start your response — $149 →

A real response

This is what arrives, exactly as it arrives

An illustrative applicant: a solo founder of a database query-optimisation service who filed the application himself and drew two refusals at once. It answers a pair of refusals raised on one office action. Below is the opening of the first argument, and then the part that makes it worth signing — the section that argues against itself.

QUERYFAST Is Suggestive, Not Merely Descriptive

I respectfully submit that QUERYFAST is suggestive rather than merely descriptive of my database query optimization software. A mark is merely descriptive only if it immediately conveys a quality, feature, or characteristic of the goods without requiring thought or imagination. A suggestive mark, by contrast, requires a mental leap to connect the term to the product.

Where this argument is weak

This argument is moderately strong but not certain. The examining attorney may reasonably believe that software buyers immediately understand QUERYFAST to mean 'a service that makes queries fast' without requiring imagination. The fact that you have press coverage and five years of use strongly supports a fallback argument under 15 U.S.C. §2(f) that the mark has acquired distinctiveness, but you did not check that box on your application. If the examiner maintains the refusal, you would then need to either amend to the Supplemental Register (which provides fewer rights) or file a new §2(f) claim with specimens spanning five years, which would extend prosecution. Attach all press coverage, customer testimonials using QUERYFAST as a brand name, and any evidence showing that consumers recognize QUERYFAST as your mark rather than as a description.

Read the whole thing — free Start your own — $149

What you get for $149

Your office action in plain English

What each refusal in your document actually decides, and the exact date your response is due, counted from the issue date printed on it.

An argument per refusal, in your voice

Written against what the examining attorney actually weighs, and built only from facts you supplied. Every argument lists the facts it leans on so you can check each one.

Where each argument is weak

Said out loud, under every argument: which part the examining attorney will push back on, and what evidence would fix it. This is the part you will not get from anyone selling you confidence.

Amendments written the way the USPTO wants them

A narrowed identification of goods, or a disclaimer in the exact wording, ready to paste into the right field — checked so it can never accidentally broaden what you filed.

An evidence checklist and a filing walkthrough

What to attach, and then TEAS step by step: which form, which field, what to paste where, what the signature block has to say.

A private page and a printable PDF

Bookmark it and come back to it. One payment of $149 — no subscription, no upsell, no consultation to book.

Find your refusal — these explainers are free

markanswer handles five refusal types. Each has a page saying what it means, what would change the examining attorney’s mind, and the argument most applicants reach for on that refusal that does not work. No email, nothing to sign up for.

Section 2(d) — likelihood of confusionThe argument almost every applicant reaches for, which does not work Section 2(e)(1) — merely descriptiveThe five-year claim you may not be able to make yet — check the arithmetic Specimen refusalA substitute specimen is not just a better photograph Indefinite identification of goods or servicesYou can narrow it. You can never widen it — and the ratchet is permanent Disclaimer requirementAgreeing is usually right — but notice what it sits next to

Your deadline, and the number a lot of pages still get wrong

You have 3 months from the issue date printed on the office action — not from the day the email arrived, and not from the day you opened it. One extension of 3 more months is available for $125, and you have to request it before the original date passes (37 C.F.R. §2.62(a)(2)).

This changed on December 3, 2022. Before that the period was a flat six months, and a great deal of guidance still published online says so. If a page tells you that you have six months by right, it is describing the old rule.

USPTO: if a response is filed after the deadline the application will be abandoned and application fees will not be refunded. That is the whole reason to act on this now rather than in a month.

What markanswer is, said plainly

You are the author and the signer. markanswer prepares a document. You review it against your own office action, correct anything that is not true of you, sign it and file it yourself through TEAS. It is not a law firm, gives no legal advice, never contacts the USPTO for anyone, and never files anything.
It never tells you what will happen.No success rates, no odds, no “this will overcome the refusal”. A check runs over every pack before delivery and rejects that language, because the only honest position is that no one knows what an examining attorney will do.
Nothing gets invented to fill a gap. Every argument is built from facts you supplied and cites only from a fixed list of real statutes and TMEP sections. It will not name a competing mark you did not give us a registration number for, and it will not cite a number that appears nowhere in your intake. Those are checked mechanically, not merely asked for.
It turns money away. If the applicant is domiciled outside the United States, the USPTO requires a US-licensed attorney — so markanswer refuses before payment rather than sell a document you may not file. Same if your office action raises a refusal outside the five it handles.

When to hire a trademark attorney instead

There are situations where $149 of drafting is the wrong purchase and a lawyer is the right one. Every pack markanswer produces says this in its own words, for the buyer’s own facts. In general:

The refusal has gone final. Your next filing is your last as-of-right chance, and appeals are procedurally unforgiving.
Someone has opposed or petitioned to cancel your mark. That is litigation before the TTAB — discovery, motions, hard deadlines. markanswer does not touch it.
You want to approach the cited registrant for a consent or coexistence agreement. That is contract drafting with another party, not a response to an examiner.
The applicant is domiciled outside the United States. Not a judgment call — the USPTO requires representation.
Answering honestly would mean changing your filing basis or your dates of use. That reaches the validity of the application itself.
You are not comfortable signing a legal argument under penalty of perjury. That is a completely reasonable place to land, and it is worth paying someone to carry it.

Questions

Am I actually allowed to respond to this myself?

If the applicant is domiciled in the United States or a US territory, yes. You filed the application yourself and you may answer the office action yourself. If the applicant is domiciled elsewhere, the USPTO requires a US-licensed attorney, and markanswer refuses before payment.

How long do I have?

Three months from the issue date printed on the office action, with one three-month extension available for $125 if you request it before that date. This changed in December 2022 — pages telling you six months are describing the old rule. Miss it and the application is abandoned; the USPTO does not refund your filing fees.

Which refusals does markanswer handle?

Five: likelihood of confusion under Section 2(d), merely descriptive under Section 2(e)(1), specimen refusals, indefinite identification of goods or services, and disclaimer requirements. Anything else is refused before payment rather than guessed at.

Will this overcome my refusal?

Nobody can tell you that, and markanswer will not pretend to. What it gives you is a response built on the factors the examining attorney actually weighs, from your own facts, with an honest account of where it is weak — so you can decide, before you file, whether to file it or hire someone.

What if I do not like what I get?

Refunds run on things that can be checked rather than on a try-it-and-decide window. You get your $149 back if your office action raises a refusal type outside the five markanswer covers, if our own checks fail the drafted response after a retry, or if our logs show you never opened the pack and never fetched the PDF — that last one within 30 days of delivery. The first two happen automatically, without you asking. Full wording is in the Terms.

How long does it take after I pay?

Usually a few minutes. You land on a private page that updates itself while the response is drafted, and the pack also goes to your email so you can close the tab.

What do you do with my answers?

They are used to draft your response and to keep your pack available at your private link. See the privacy policy. Reply to any email from us, or use the feedback button on any page, and a person-readable answer comes back.

markanswer prepares self-help documents only. It is not a law firm, it provides no legal advice, and it never represents anyone before the USPTO. You review, sign and file everything yourself, before the deadline printed on your own office action. No outcome is ever promised.