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[Mark Eagle]

Hi,

I would like to present a case (of course the names are not real).

"Memories" was a print business magazine with a limited (but international) circulation published between 1990 and 2001. Its website, with a few general info about the magazine, was not updated for many years and recently it redirects the incoming traffic to an e-commerce site. The name of the magazine is not a registered trademark.

Now I would like to create a news website about business with the domain businessmemories_dot_com and the name "Business Memories". Of course I have not any relation with the former magazine (in fact I discovered his existence after I purchased the domain name).

Could I have some legal problems with the publisher of the dead magazine in the future when my site will get (I hope) some popularity?

Thanks

(Excuse my bad English)

[JSonnabend]

If the mark has been abandoned, then you should be in the clear to use it.  The practical problem is that it's very difficult to determine with any certainty whether or not a mark has been abandoned.  Non-use of a mark for three years gives rise to a presumption that the mark has been abandoned in certain contexts, but the presumption is just that -- it is not definitive.

- Jeff