Skip to main content
S 1990 98th Congress Senate

Trademark Clarification Act of 1983

Official title: A bill to clarify the circumstances under which a trademark may be cancelled or abandoned.

Introduced: October 21, 1983 See on congress.gov
Commerce MarketingPatents, Trademarks, and CopyrightsTrademarks
This bill died when the 98th Congress ended
It never became law before the 98th Congress (1983–1984) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 8 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Sep 20, 1984
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 1213.
Sep 20, 1984
Committee on Judiciary. Reported to Senate by Senator Thurmond with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 98-627.
Aug 2, 1984
Committee on Judiciary. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
Jul 31, 1984
Subcommittee on Patents, Copyrights and Trademarks. Approved for full committee consideration with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
Feb 1, 1984
Committee on Patents, Copyrights and Trademarks; Subcommittee on Patents, Copyrights and Trademarks. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 98-901.
Oct 26, 1983
Referred to Subcommittee on Patents, Copyrights and Trademarks.
Oct 21, 1983
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
Oct 21, 1983
Introduced in Senate
 Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

 Latest action September 20, 1984

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 1213.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Trademark Clarification Act of 1983 - Amends the Lanham Trademark Act to state that a registered trademark has not become a generic (common descriptive name) and therefore cancellable because such mark is also used as a proper name or to identify a unique product or service. Makes the primary significance of the mark to the purchasing public rather than purchaser motivation the test for whether or not the mark has become a generic.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 1990: Trademark Clarification Act of 1983. 98th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-1990/
MLA
"S. 1990: Trademark Clarification Act of 1983." 98th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-1990/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 1990, 98th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-1990/.
Markdown link
[S. 1990: Trademark Clarification Act of 1983](https://openamerica.io/bill/98-S-1990/)
Report a problem