Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Electronic Filing System. http://estta.uspto.gov
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`ESTTA Tracking number:
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`ESTTA1065053
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`Filing date:
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`06/30/2020
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`IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
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`Proceeding
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`91255768
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`Party
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`Correspondence
`Address
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`Submission
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`Filer's Name
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`Filer's email
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`Signature
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`Date
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`Attachments
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`Defendant
`Aspireon Wealth Advisors, LLC
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`CHARLES W. HANOR
`750 RITTIMAN ROAD
`SAN ANTONIO, TX 78209
`UNITED STATES
`trademarks@hanor.com
`no phone number provided
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`Answer
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`Charles W. Hanor
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`trademarks@hanor.com
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`/Charles W. Hanor/
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`06/30/2020
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`20200625 Answer to Notice of Opposition ASPIREON.pdf(75085 bytes )
`20200625 COVID Statement.pdf(84276 bytes )
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`IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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`BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
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`___________________________________________
`Aspiriant, LLC
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`Opposer,
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`Aspireon Wealth Advisors, LLC
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`Applicant.
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`Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
`P.O. Box 1451
`Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1451
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`Opposition No.: 91255768
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`Appl. Serial No. 88/516,561
`Mark: ASPIREON
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`APPLICANT’S ANSWER TO
`NOTICE OF OPPOSITION
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`APPLICANT'S ANSWER TO NOTICE OF OPPOSITION
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`Applicant, Aspireon Wealth Advisors, LLC, by their attorney, hereby answer the
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`allegations set forth in the Notice of Opposition as follows:
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`1.
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`2.
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`3.
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`4.
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`5.
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`Applicant admits Paragraph 1 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant admits Paragraph 2 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 3 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 4 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about the truth
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`of the allegations of paragraph 5 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`6.
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`7.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 6 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief about the truth
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`of the allegations of paragraph 7 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`8.
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`9.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 8 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 9 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`1
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`10.
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`11.
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`12.
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`13.
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`14.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 10 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 11 of the Notice of Opposition..
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`Applicant denies paragraph 12 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 13 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`Applicant denies paragraph 14 of the Notice of Opposition.
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`AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES
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`15.
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`Alternatively, and/or in addition, Opposer’s claims are barred by the doctrine of
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`waiver.
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`16.
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`Alternatively, and/or in addition, Opposer’s claims are barred by the doctrine of
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`acquiescence.
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`17.
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`Alternatively, and/or in addition, Opposer’s claims are barred by the doctrine of
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`unclean hands.
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`18.
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`Alternatively, and/or in addition, Opposer’s claims are barred by the doctrine of
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`trademark misuse.
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`19.
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`Applicant respectfully requests that the opposition be dismissed and that that
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`Opposer’s application and mark be denied.
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`Dated: June 30, 2020.
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`Respectfully submitted,
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`/s/ Charles W. Hanor
`Charles W. Hanor
`HANOR LAW FIRM PC
`750 Rittiman Road
`San Antonio, Texas 78209
`210-829-2002 (direct line)
`210-842-9500 (mobile)
`210-829-2001 (fax)
`trademarks@hanor.com
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`Attorneys for Applicant
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`CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
`I hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing was filed via the Electronic System
`for Trademark Trials and Appeals has been forwarded to counsel via email:
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`
`Joanna Ardalan
`ONE LLP
`9301 Wilshire Blvd., Penthouse
`Beverly Hills, CA 90210
`jardalan@onellp.com
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`Attorneys for Opposer.
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`on June 30, 2020.
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`/s/ Charles W. Hanor
`Charles W. Hanor
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`4
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`IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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`BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
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`Opposition No.: 91255768
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`___________________________________________
`Aspiriant, LLC
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`Opposer,
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`Aspireon Wealth Advisors, LLC
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`Applicant.
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`Trademark Trial and Appeal Board
`P.O. Box 1451
`Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1451
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`APPLICANT'S STATEMENT REGARDING DISRUPTION OF OPERATIONS DUE TO
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`Appl. Serial No. 88/516,561
`Mark: ASPIREON
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`COVID-19
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`The Board issued a notice of default on June 30, 2020. The notice states that neither an answer nor
`any extension of time to answer has been filed; that notice of default under Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(a)
`is entered; and that Applicant is allowed 30 days from the date of the notice in which to show cause
`why default judgment should not be entered against it. Applicant is allowed until July 30, 2020 to
`respond to the April 18, 2020 order to show cause why judgment by default should not be entered.
`Applicant hereby timely files this response showing good cause for the failure to answer to the
`notice of opposition in this proceeding by April 8, 2020 as follows.
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`Counsel for Applicant reside and office in Bexar County, Texas. On March 23, 2020, Bexar
`County issued a Stay at Home Order to combat the rise of COVID-19, This Stay-at-Home Order
`has been continually in effect since March 24, 2020. As a result, counsel has been adjusting to
`adopting remote technology and other workarounds to continue the ordinary course of business,
`including setting up remote access to the server and teleconferencing to communicate. There had
`been severe, substantial interference to access to important documents and systems during this
`process. In addition, counsel implemented new procedures regarding personnel. The disruption in
`normal communication between personnel materially affected other operations, including internal
`docketing of matters and delegation of duties. Currently, counsel for Applicant is operating with
`only two (2) employees, reducing half its operating staff with the office closed since the beginning
`of this pandemic, such that the outbreak materially interfered with timely filing.
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`Under the March 16, 2020 United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) notice entitled,
`“Relief Available to Patent and Trademark Applicants, Patentees, and Trademark Owners Affected
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`1
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`by the Coronavirus Outbreak,” the USPTO “considers the effects of the Coronavirus outbreak that
`began in approximately January 2020 to be an ‘extraordinary situation’ within the meaning of 37
`C.F.R. § 1.183 and 37 C.F.R. § 2.146 for affected patent and trademark applicants, patentees,
`reexamination parties, and trademark owners.” The notice entitled, “Notice of Extended Waiver
`of Trademark-Related Timing Deadlines under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic
`Security Act and Other Relief Available to Trademark Applicants and Trademark Owners,” signed
`by Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO Andrei Iancu on
`April 28, 2020 included waivers of deadlines for many trademark-related actions due between
`March 27, 2020 and May 31, 2020, including filing notices of opposition.
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`Because of the disruption to counsel’s regular workload and work procedures due to COVID-19,
`Applicant required additional time to sufficiently prepare Appellee’s answer, which has now been
`filed.
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`Dated: June 30, 2020.
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`Respectfully submitted,
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`/s/ Charles W. Hanor
`Charles W. Hanor
`HANOR LAW FIRM PC
`750 Rittiman Road
`San Antonio, Texas 78209
`210-829-2002 (direct line)
`210-842-9500 (mobile)
`210-829-2001 (fax)
`trademarks@hanor.com
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`Attorneys for Applicant
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`2
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`

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`CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
`I hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing was filed via the Electronic System
`for Trademark Trials and Appeals has been forwarded to counsel via email:
`
`
`Joanna Ardalan
`ONE LLP
`9301 Wilshire Blvd., Penthouse
`Beverly Hills, CA 90210
`jardalan@onellp.com
`
`Attorneys for Opposer.
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`on June 30, 2020.
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`/s/ Charles W. Hanor
`Charles W. Hanor
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`3
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