November 26, 2025
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`Opposition No. 91303406
`Serial No. 99141038
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`HILLARY I. SCHROEDER
`NAME GAME IP, PC
`8605 SANTA MONICA BLVD., #145444
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`WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA 90069
`Altria Client Services LLC
`v.
`JUUL Labs, Inc.
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`JOEL SAMUELS
`HARNESS DICKEY & PIERCE PLC
`7700 BONHOMME
`SUITE 400
`ST. LOUIS, MO 63105
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`ESTTA1479797
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`NOTICE OF INSTITUTION
`The opposer (plaintiff) identified above has filed a notice of opposition to the registration
`sought by applicant (defendant) in the above-identified application. This notice of
`institution is forwarded pursuant to Trademark Rules 2.105(b) and (c), and constitutes
`service of the notice of opposition on applicant. An electronic version of the notice of
`opposition is viewable on TTABVUE at https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/. See
`Trademark Rule 2.105(a). The parties should diligently monitor this proceeding via
`TTABVUE.
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`APPLICANT MUST FILE ANSWER THROUGH ESTTA
`As required in the schedule below, applicant must file an answer within sixty (60) days
`from the date of this order. Failure to file a timely answer may result in the entry of
`default judgment and abandonment of the application. Regarding when a deadline falls
`on a Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday, see Trademark Rule 2.196. Applicant must
`file the answer through ESTTA - Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals,
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`unless ESTTA is unavailable due to technical problems or extraordinary circumstances
`are present. An answer filed on paper under these limited circumstances must be
`accompanied by a Petition to the Director (and the required fee under Trademark Rule
`2.6). See Trademark Rule 2.106(b)(1). In substance, applicant’s answer must comply
`with Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(b); it must admit or deny the allegations in the notice of opposition,
`and may include available defenses and counterclaims. Regarding the form and content
`of an answer, see Trademark Rule 2.106(b)(2) and TBMP § 311.
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`DUTY TO MAINTAIN ACCURATE CORRESPONDENCE INFORMATION
`Throughout this proceeding, the parties, and their attorneys or representatives, must
`notify the Board of any correction or update of physical address and email address, and
`should use the ESTTA change of address form. See Trademark Rule 2.18(b); TBMP §
`117.
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`SERVICE OF ANSWER AND OF ALL SUBMISSION S
`The service of the answer, and all other submissions in this proceeding, and of all
`matters that are required to be served but not required to be filed in the proceeding
`record, must be by email unless the parties stipulate otherwise. Trademark Rule
`2.119(b). In the absence of a stipulation, service may be by other means only under the
`limited circumstances and in a manner specified in Trademark Rule 2.119(b).
`Regarding the signing and service of all submissions, see TBMP §§ 113-113.04.
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`The answer, and all other submissions, must include proof of service. As noted in TBMP
`§ 113.03, proof of service may be in the following certificate of service form:
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`I hereby certify that a true and complete copy of the foregoing
`(insert title of submission) has been served on (insert name of
`opposing counsel or party) by forwarding said copy on (insert date
`of mailing), via email (or insert other appropriate method of
`delivery) to: (set out name, and address or email address of
`opposing counsel or party).
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`Signature__________________________
`Date_______________________________
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`SUBMIT ALL FILINGS ONLINE VIA ESTTA
`Submissions must be filed via ESTTA, the Board’s online filing system, unless ESTTA is
`unavailable due to technical problems or extraordinary circumstances are present.
`Trademark Rule 2.126(a). Submissions may be filed in paper form only under the
`limited circumstances specified in Trademark Rule 2.126(b), with a required written
`explanation. ESTTA is accessible at the Board’s web page: https://estta.uspto.gov/. The
`page has instructions and tips. ESTTA offers various forms, some of which may require
`attachments and/or a fee. For technical questions, a party may call 571-272-8500 (Mon.
`- Fri. 8:30 - 5:00 ET) or email ESTTA@uspto.gov. This proceeding involves several
`deadlines, and due to potential technical issues, parties should not wait until the
`deadline to submit filings. The Board may decline to consider an untimely submission.
`Moreover, Trademark Rule 2.126 sets forth the required form and format for all
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`submissions (e.g., page limitations), and the Board may decline to consider any
`submission that does not comply with this rule, including, but not limited to motions,
`briefs, exhibits, and deposition transcripts.
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`CONFERENCE, DISCOVERY, DISCLOSURE AND TRIAL SCHEDULE
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`Time to Answer 1/25/2026
`Deadline for Discovery Conference 2/24/2026
`Discovery Opens 2/24/2026
`Initial Disclosures Due 3/26/2026
`Expert Disclosures Due 7/24/2026
`Discovery Closes 8/23/2026
`Plaintiff's Pretrial Disclosures Due 10/7/2026
`Plaintiff's 30-day Trial Period Ends 11/21/2026
`Defendant's Pretrial Disclosures Due 12/6/2026
`Defendant's 30-day Trial Period Ends 1/20/2027
`Plaintiff's Rebuttal Disclosures Due 2/4/2027
`Plaintiff's 15-day Rebuttal Period Ends 3/6/2027
`Plaintiff's Opening Brief Due 5/5/2027
`Defendant's Brief Due 6/4/2027
`Plaintiff's Reply Brief Due 6/19/2027
`Request for Oral Hearing (optional) Due 6/29/2027
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`PARTIES ARE REQUIRED TO HOLD DISCOVERY CONFERENCE
`The parties are required to schedule and hold a discovery conference by the deadline in
`the schedule in this order, or as reset by the Board. In the conference, the parties are
`required to discuss, at a minimum, 1) the nature and basis of their claims and defenses,
`2) the possibility of promptly settling, or at least narrowing the scope of claims or
`defenses, and 3) arrangements for disclosures, discovery, preserving discoverable
`information and introduction of evidence at trial. For guidance, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(f),
`Trademark Rule 2.120(a)(2)(i) and TBMP §§ 401.01 and 408.01(a).
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`The parties must hold the conference in person, by telephone or by a means on which
`they agree. A Board interlocutory attorney or administrative trademark judge will
`participate in the conference either upon request of any party made no later than ten
`(10) days prior to the conference deadline, or when the Board deems it useful to have
`Board involvement. See Trademark Rule 2.120(a)(2)(i). A request for Board participation
`must be made either through ESTTA, or by telephone call to the assigned interlocutory
`attorney named on the TTABVUE record for this proceeding. A party requesting Board
`participation should first determine possible dates and times when all parties are
`available. A conference with a Board attorney’s participation will be by telephone in
`accordance with the Board’s instructions.
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`For efficiency, the parties may stipulate to various procedural and substantive
`disclosure, discovery and trial matters (e.g., modification of deadlines and obligations)
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`upon written stipulation and approval by the Board. Trademark Rule 2.120(a)(2)(iv)
`provides a non-exhaustive list of matters to which parties may stipulate. The best
`practice is to reduce all stipulations to writing. If email service is not practical, such as
`for voluminous document production in discovery, the parties should discuss in the
`conference how production will be made. The parties, and their attorneys or
`representatives, have a duty to cooperate in the discovery process. TBMP § 408.01.
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`PROTECTIVE ORDER FOR CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
`The Board's Standard Protective Order is automatically imposed in all inter partes
`proceedings, and is available at: https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks-application-
`process/appealing-trademark-decisions/standard-documents-and-guidelines-0. During
`their conference, the parties should discuss whether they will use an alternative or
`modified protective order, subject to approval by the Board. See Trademark Rule
`2.116(g) and TBMP § 412. The standard order does not automatically protect
`confidential information; its provisions for designating confidential information must be
`utilized as needed by the parties. Trademark Rule 2.126(c) sets forth the procedure for
`filing confidential submissions.
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`ACCELERATED CASE RESOLUTION (ACR)
`During their conference, the parties are to discuss whether they wish to seek mediation
`or arbitration, and whether they can stipulate to the Board's Accelerated Case
`Resolution (ACR) process for a more efficient and cost-effective means of obtaining the
`Board’s determination of the proceeding. For details, and examples of ACR
`proceedings, see TBMP § 528, and the Board's webpage: https://www.uspto.gov/ttab.
`INITIAL DISCLOSURES AND DISCOVERY
`Regarding the deadline for and contents of initial disclosures, see Trademark Rules
`2.120(a)(1) and (2)(i), and TBMP § 401.02. Regarding deadlines for serving and
`responding to discovery, see Trademark Rule 2.120(a)(3) and TBMP § 403.03. Certain
`provisions of Fed. R. Civ. P. 26 are applicable in modified form. Note that written
`discovery (interrogatories, requests for production, requests for admission) must be
`served early enough so that responses will be due no later than the close of discovery.
`Regarding the scope and limits of discovery, see TBMP 414; discoverable items may
`include documents, tangible things, and electronically stored information (ESI).
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`MOTIONS
`Certain provisions of Fed. R. Civ. P. 11 apply to all submissions in Board proceedings.
`See TBMP § 527.02. Regarding available motions, see TBMP Chapter 500. Regarding
`applicable deadlines to respond to motions, depending on the motion filed, see
`Trademark Rules 2.127(a) and (e)(1). When a party timely files a potentially dispositive
`motion the proceeding is suspended with respect to all matters not germane to the
`motion. See Trademark Rule 2.127(d). In addressing motions or other filings, if it
`appears to the Board that a telephone conference would be beneficial, or upon request
`of one or both parties, the Board may schedule a conference. See Trademark Rule
`2.120(j)(1) and TBMP § 502.06(a).
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`1 To facilitate accuracy, ESTTA provides thumbnails to view each page before submitting.
`PRETRIAL DISCLOSURES, TRIAL AND BRIEFING
`Regarding the procedures and deadlines for pretrial disclosures and trial, and
`specifically the noticing, taking, serving and submitting of evidence and testimony, see
`Trademark Rules 2.120(k), 2.121, 2.122, 2.123 and 2.125, as well as TBMP Chapter
`700. The parties should review these authorities. For example: witness testimony may
`be submitted in the form of affidavit or declaration subject to the right to oral cross
`examination; transcripts of testimony depositions, with exhibits, must be served on each
`adverse party within thirty (30) days after completion of taking the testimony; certified
`transcripts and exhibits must be filed, with notice of such filing served on each adverse
`party; and all notices of reliance must be submitted during the submitting party's
`assigned testimony period and must indicate generally the relevance the evidence and
`associate it with one or more issues.
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`Main briefs shall be filed in accordance with Trademark Rules 2.128(a) and (b). An oral
`hearing is not required, but will be scheduled upon separate notice timely filed pursuant
`to Trademark Rule 2.129(a). Regarding briefs and oral hearings, see TBMP §§ 801-802.
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`TIPS FOR FILING EVIDENCE, TESTIMONY, OR LARGE DOCUMENTS
`The Board requires each submission to meet the following criteria before it will be
`considered: 1) pages must be legible and easily read on a computer screen; 2) page
`orientation should be determined by its ease of viewing relevant text or evidence, for
`example, there should be no sideways or upside-down pages; 3) pages must appear in
`their proper order; 4) depositions and exhibits must be clearly labeled and numbered –
`use separator pages between exhibits and clearly label each exhibit using sequential
`letters or numbers - and 5) the entire submission should be text-searchable.
`Additionally, submissions must be compliant with Trademark Rules 2.119 and 2.126.
`Submissions failing to meet all of the criteria above may require re-filing. Note: Parties
`are strongly encouraged to check the entire document before filing.1 The Board will not
`extend or reset proceeding schedule dates or other deadlines to allow time to re-file
`documents. For more tips and helpful filing information, please visit the please visit the
`ESTTA help webpage.
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`LEGAL RESOURCES AVAILABLE AT WEB PAGE
`For a general description of Board proceedings, see TBMP §102.03. Proceedings are
`governed by the Trademark Rules of Practice in Parts 2 and 7 of Title 37 of the Code of
`Federal Regulations. These rules, the Manual of Procedure (TBMP), information on
`Accelerated Case Resolution (ACR) and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), and
`many Frequently Asked Questions, are available on the Board’s web page, at:
`https://www.uspto.gov/ttab. The parties should check the web page for important
`changes, announcements, etc., many of which apply to proceedings already in
`progress.
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`PARTIES NOT REPRESENTED BY COUNSEL
`This proceeding is similar to a civil action in a federal district court and can be complex.
`The Board strongly advises all parties to secure the services of an attorney who is
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`familiar with trademark law and Board procedure. The Board cannot aid in the selection
`of an attorney. See TBMP § 114.02. The Board requires strict compliance with all
`applicable authorities whether or not the party is represented by counsel.
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`PARTIES WITHOUT A U.S. DOMICILE MUST SECURE U.S. COUNSEL
`Effective August 3, 2019, the USPTO amended its rules to require applicants,
`registrants or parties to a proceeding whose domicile is not located within the U.S. or its
`territories to be represented by an attorney who is an active member in good standing of
`the bar of the highest court of a state in the U.S., including the District of Columbia or
`any Commonwealth or territory. Attorney information requires applicant’s appointed
`attorney to provide email and bar information as follows: Year of admission, State or
`territory of admission and, bar number if one is issued. 84 FR 31498 (Requirement of
`U.S. Licensed Attorney for Foreign Trademark Applicants and Registrants, July 2,
`2019). Until ESTTA forms are available which will mask the bar information, an attorney
`may file the required information through ESTTA and select “confidential.” A filing under
`“confidential” is not made available for public viewing.
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`NOTIFY BOARD OF ALL PENDING ACTIONS
`If the parties are, or during the pendency of this proceeding become, parties in another
`Board proceeding or a civil action involving the same or related marks, or involving any
`issues of law or fact which are also in this proceeding, they shall notify the Board
`immediately. See Trademark Rule 2.106(b)(3)(i). The Board will consolidate and/or
`suspend related Board proceedings, as appropriate. See Trademark Rule 2.117(c);
`TBMP §§ 510 and 511.
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