What is the difference between the principal register and the supplemental register?
The Principal Register is for marks that either do not require a showing of secondary meaning (these marks include arbitrary, fanciful and suggestive marks) or descriptive marks that have acquired secondary meaning. The Supplemental Register is for descriptive terms that may become Trademarks through the acquisition of secondary meaning. Once these marks acquire secondary meaning, they are transferred to the Supplemental Register. An applicant may not seek registration on both registers in the same application.
Marks registered on the Principal Register receive full benefits of registration, such as constructive notice (i.e. all persons are deemed to know about the registration), incontestability after five years, presumption of validity, etc. The Supplemental Register does not confer the latter benefits, but it does allow the owner to display the mark with an official registration symbol (the encircled “R”), and it prevents others from federally registering the same mark. It will also turn up on federal searches conducted by others. A mark used for five years may “graduate” from the Supplemental Register to the Principal Register, if a new application is filed.
