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Mich. Comp. Laws § 429.32

Registration of certain marks prohibited

Applied in 4 court decisions — leading case Empire National Bank of Traverse City v. Empire of America FSA (1983)

Most recently applied in Movie Mania Metro, Inc. v. GZ DVD's Inc. (September 2014)

1969, Act 242, Eff

How often courts cite this section

1980199020002010201420
citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

Sec. 2. A mark by which the goods or services of an applicant for registration may be distinguished from the goods or services of others shall not be registered if the mark: (a) Consists of or comprises immoral, deceptive, or scandalous matter. (b) Consists of or comprises matter which may disparage or falsely suggest a connection with persons, living or dead, institutions, beliefs, or national symbols, or bring them into contempt or disrepute. (c) Consists of or comprises the flag, coat of arms, or other insignia of the United States, or of a state or municipality, or of a foreign nation, or a simulation thereof. (d) Consists of or comprises the name, signature, or portrait of a living individual, except with the individual's written consent. (e) Consists of a mark which, when applied to the goods or services of the applicant, is merely descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive of the goods or services, or when applied to the goods or services of the applicant, is primarily geographically descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive of them, or is primarily merely a surname. This subsection shall not prevent the registration of a mark used in this state by the applicant which has become distinctive of the applicant's goods or services. The administrator may accept as evidence that the mark has become distinctive, as applied to the applicant's goods or services, proof of continuous use thereof as a mark by the applicant in this state or elsewhere for 5 years immediately preceding the date of the filing of the application for registration. (f) Consists of or comprises a mark which so resembles a mark registered in this state, or a mark or trade name previously used in this state by another person and not abandoned, as to be likely, when applied to the goods or services of the applicant, to cause confusion, mistake, or to deceive.

Official source: Michigan Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Michigan statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.