Failure to Complete Electronic Filing Fee Payment Nullifies Opposition

Thanks to John Welch at The TTABlog for pointing out Vibe Records, Inc. v. Vibe Media Group LLC, Opposition No. 91176345 (July 11, 2008) [precedential] where a U.S. trademark opposition was dismissed for failure to complete the electronic filing fee payment:

Opposer obtained an extension of time to March 14, 2007 within which to file its opposition. On March 13th, its president attempted to file a notice of opposition electronically, but payment of the fee was not successfully completed. Therefore Opposer received neither the onscreen "Receipt" nor the e-mail acknowledgment that accompanies a successful filing. The payment was electronically processed by the PTO via a charge to opposer's credit card on March 16, 2007, but that was too late (see Rule 2.101(d)(4)).

"Perhaps Opposer should have hired an attorney for the filing," notes John Welch, "which was attacked by Applicant not only on the ground of timeliness, but also for failing to state a claim."