On November 14, 2006 a 24 Page document was mailed, to the founder of Precious Paws, from The United States Patent and Trademark Office's Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. The decision was stated in the last paragraph on Page Number 24.

QUOTE: "DECISION: Both oppositions are sustained for the goods and services in International Classes, 16, 21 and 25 and 35, on the basis of likelihood of confusion under Section 2(d), and registration of both applicant's marks is refused." END QUOTE.

In other words, I lost. However, my merchandise is still available! I just cannot display the registered trademark symbol (of the R in a circle) next to my company logo. I can however display the Registered Trademark symbol next to my company name, Precious Paws. My application to the USPTO in October of 1999 was accepted and published for opposition on June 27, 2000. My Precious Paws company name for a clothing line was registered in The United States Patent and Trademark Office on November 27, 2001.

I would like to sincerely thank each and every one of you who took the time to fill out my survey questionnaire regarding this trademark battle. I received over 500 of them, from all over the United States and I used most of them, as exhibits at the testimonial deposition held in November of 2005. I personally read each and every one of them (as I received them) and many of your remarks brought tears to my eyes as you made reference to why you had purchased Precious Paws merchandise and what my clothing line and logo had meant to you. Most of you even took the time to have the survey/questionnaire notarized and again, I thank you! Although your responses were offered into evidence as exhibits, they were considered inadmissible because: Quote Ð "There is no evidence that the survey was made with the assistance of a survey professional". End Quote. As a result, your reason for purchasing Precious Paws merchandise wasn't heard by the judges, but it was heard loud and clear by me! Your opinions and sense of humor gave me the inner drive to succeed.

Also entered into evidence as exhibits (and accepted) were all the advertisements I had placed in Yankee magazine and articles that were published in magazines, about my company Precious Paws and its mission, including The Arizona Foothills magazine, Coping with Cancer magazine, and Mamm magazine.

In the end, after all my years of hard work as a business owner, wearing many hats along the way, such as: sales woman, merchandiser, T-shirt logo designer, fundraiser, show vendor, bookkeeper, janitor, buyer, media spokesperson, acting attorney pro se, and so on and so forth, I lost the Trademark battleL However, I did win the biggest battle of my life, as a two-time breast cancer survivorJ I also gave birth to a perfectly healthy and precious baby boy, at the age of 39 years old. Even after the cancer and the chemo, the radiation and tamoxifen, after all the exhaustion and depression, nothing or nobody could take my destiny of motherhood away from me. Nor could another company and their teams of real attorneys, take away from me my freedom of speech, my passion and determination to build Precious Paws from the ground up, and my undying perseverance to stand up to a multimillion dollar enterprise. I was able to achieve all of this due to you, my loyal customers, and all the words of wisdom and encouragement that you sent my way!

There's and old saying: "It's Not Over Until the Fat Lady Sings". I'll surely be singing when I finish and publish my book, on my personal journey as a cancer patient turned entrepreneur, that is tentatively titled: Through Lying Lawyers and Dirty Dogs Ð The "Ruff" Rise of Precious Paws.

Until then, if you have any interest (as I do) in Trademarks, and what a "Dog Eat Dog" world it is, if you sell clothing with a dog image on it, please check out one of my favorite business websites at www.uspto.gov

While surfing that site you will be amazed at how many companies have to go through the same trademark battle, with the same Martha's Vineyard company that I did; such as, Victoria Secrets' pink dog logo or The Yellow Dog of Nantucket, who by the way, had a logo created in 2003 with a standing yellow dog wearing a pink dog collar, to raise money for breast cancer services at Nantucket Cottage Hospital.

You don't see me barking at anyone! As far I'm concerned, the world is big enough for all three companies to sell clothing items, and to raise money for charity along the way.

"Life is not measured
by the number of breaths
we take but by
the places and moments
that take our breath away".
- ANONYMOUS

You, my dear customers, have taken my breath away, at your undying loyalty and support, to help a fellow breast cancer survivor continue her mission, to help eradicate breast cancer in our lifetime, while running a tiny little clothing company in the big wide world that we live in. I may have been knocked down in the ring by a big bad dog from Martha's Vineyard but life is still great! So to you, my dear Black Dog, Move Over Rover, Precious Paws is once again on the rise!

Elizabeth Frechette
Precious Paws Founder