Taco Tuesday Trademark

“Taco Tuesday” is back in the news. Lebron James made headlines in 2019 for his attempt to register Taco Tuesday as a trademark. That effort ultimately failed. This week, Taco Bell has taken steps to have the registration of “Taco Tuesday” cancelled.

Taco Tuesday Trademark History

The term “Taco Tuesday” was successfully registered with the USPTO in 1989. The owner of the trademark is a restaurant out of New Jersey called Taco Johns. Taco Johns has attempted to enforce the trademark for many years by monitoring the market and sending cease and desist letters when necessary. The term has become very popular over the last several years, peaking with the Lebron James application in 2019.

Taco Bell jumped into the mix this week by filing paperwork alleging that the term has become too generic and the trademark should be cancelled. Taco Bell claims that the term has reached a point where it cannot be owned by a single entity and that it should be “liberated” for public use.

What’s Next

The USPTO may have tipped it’s hand on how this will proceed. The USPTO refusal of Lebron’s 2019 application stated that the term was too “commonplace” to be registered. This is a strong indication that the USPTO will side with Taco Bell and cancel the registered mark. Nonetheless, it will be entertaining to watch Taco Bell’s and Taco Johns’ marketing teams battle it out in the meantime.

As always, feel free to Contact Alex to discuss the post, tacos, or to get started on registering your trademarks.