Where to order a seal with CA bear on it!!!!!

[Gromatici]

I've seen it more than once, and some of you folks have the seal with the grizzly on it.............I need to get one of these. Where did you order it from?

You know who you are!

eackerman@gromatici.com

[LA Stevens]

David Woolley owns the Trademark. You'll need to contact him. https://www.dwoolley.com/

L.A. Stevens

[hellsangle]

Larry is correct, Wooley has it Trademarked.

So DO NOT COPY his seal verbatim. You need a different border, different name, different LS # . . .

You'll need to create one in ACAD then convert to *.tiff, etc. for stamp company to make. (Once you create a digital copy - you kinda don't need a stamp.)

Besides . .. who would be so mean as to sue a brother surveyor for Trademark infringement? Isn't "imitation the sincerest form of flattery"? And doesn't the California Bear belong to us, like the White House used to be?

Have a good Thursday!

Crazy Phil - Sonoma

[DWoolley]

My colleagues from Marin and Sonoma Counties are correct. I hold the registered trademark for the California Bear stamps used by both engineers and land surveyors. I recently received correspondence from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office confirming that, although the marks may appear expired, they remain valid and are not at risk of lapse. Renewal will be completed shortly—before the upcoming shutdown.

I have never needed to file suit to protect the marks; we issue occasional cease-and-desist letters as necessary. One stamp vendor on the East Coast resisted compliance for a period—hired an attorney, stalled for several months—but ultimately withdrew their listings. It is remarkable how far some will go, first promising to stop infringing, then delaying through legal maneuvering, before finally falling into compliance.

We do issue license use.

DWoolley

[Ric7308]

...It is remarkable how far some will go, first promising to stop infringing, then delaying through legal maneuvering, before finally falling into compliance.

Sounds a lot like Enforcement investigations at the Board.

[CBarrett]

I'm curious how you were able to file a trademark using a public domain image and a California State symbol.
Usually it needs to be more of an original. I suppose if no-one objects, it passes?

[CBarrett]

David Woolley owns the copyright. You'll need to contact him. https://www.dwoolley.com/

L.A. Stevens

Trademark is different from a copyright.

[DWoolley]

I'm curious how you were able to file a trademark using a public domain image and a California State symbol.
Usually it needs to be more of an original. I suppose if no-one objects, it passes?

The California bear is public domain, and I didn’t claim ownership of the bear itself. What I protected is my original design — I integrated the bear into professional license stamp requirements. That unique layout is what made it protectable. I suspect I may have been influenced by Steamboat appearing on a license. Unfortunately, it requires me to send out a dozen cease and desist letters annually.

When the Great Recession slowed everything down, I used the extra quiet time to dig in and do the work that needed to be done. When the USPTO first reviewed the filing, they were skeptical, but they researched into the details, and they were surprised to find it was fully valid — all done correctly and original. I remember the USTO attorney said to me "I cannot believe we are issuing a trademark on the California bear, well done."

And the best summary of how it happened comes from a Viggo Tarasov quote "A man of focus, commitment, and sheer will.”, lol.

That’s the whole story.

DWoolley

[CBarrett]

Nice work!

[LS_8750]

"It looks like a pig" - Gen. Marian Vallejo -- Upon seeing the original Bear Flag