News Release
16 October 2017
Board for Certification of Genealogists®
The Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) obtained official registration of its “CG” mark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and was assigned Registration #5280660. This registration offers several legal benefits such as
- the right to use the federal registration symbol ® for CG,
- a legal presumption of ownership of the mark and the exclusive right to use it nationwide,
- the right to bring a federal lawsuit against infringers and recover damages and attorney’s fees, and
- a means of stopping “cybersquatters” from registering a domain name using the mark.
“We are pleased to achieve this level of protection through the trademark registration,” said Michael S. Ramage, JD, CG
®, the Board’s General Counsel. "The Board for the Certification of Genealogists thanks all of the volunteers who have worked over the years to achieve the protection of the CG designation provided by the trademark registration, including Donn Devine, JD, CG
®; and Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG
®, CGL℠.”
BCG currently uses several marks in addition to the CG mark. Our name and certification mark—Board for Certification of Genealogists and Certified Genealogist—are also registered trademarks. Our credentials other than our registered certification marks—CGL and Certified Genealogical Lecturer—are service marks. If a mark is not registered with the USPTO, the trademark owner may not legally use the ® symbol in connection with the mark.
For questions or more information contact
.
Cari A. Taplin, CG
®BCG News Release Coordinator
