Here’s a snippet of Attorney Ticora Davis’s winning argument for her clients’ trademark. Using culturally relevant legal arguments to gain the intellectual property for The Creator’s Law Firm client Black Love Boutique®

In the present matter, Examiner attempts to shorten the Cited Mark “BLACK LOVE MADE ME” to “BLACK LOVE” while completely ignoring the relevant portion of the mark that promotes a key message to the consumer.

Upon applying a culturally relevant legal interpretation to the mark, Examiner will understand that “made me” connotes the commercial context that “black love” (i.e., intimacy between two partners of the African diaspora) produced the intended outcome. The outcome could be varied as it could be children, an experience, or even a commercial product.

Further insight is provided once examining the comparable use of “made me,” in this context, in pop culture. In 2 Chainz’s “Quarantine Thick” song featuring [Latto] (i.e., Big Latto), Latto raps, “Clayco raised me, f**k that Clayco made me,” indicating that where she is from (i.e., Clayco County, Georgia) is not only instrumental but responsible for her upbringing and presence today. See Exhibit C. Important to note consumers are accustomed to encountering this common theme (i.e., locations or concepts followed by the phrase “made me”), especially those who are members of the Black community (i.e., Applicant and Registrant’s target audience). See Exhibit D (social media promotional post for graphic t-shirt with text displayed “Chicago Made Me, South Side Raised Me”).

The target audience is quite sophisticated and would never shorten the Cited Mark, or any similarly situated unitary phrase, to completely ignore “made me” as it is instrumental in the intended message the mark delivers. With this added knowledge and understanding, it is even more clear the differences between Applicant’s Mark and the Cited Mark with respect to sound, appearance, and commercial impression. These factors must be weighed against a likelihood of confusion in favor of the Applicant.

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