(United States Fourth Circuit) - In a suit under the Lanham Act,15 U.
S.
C. sections 1051-1141n, the district court's grant of the PTO Director-defendant's request for plaintiff to pay for the government's attorney and paralegal salaries required to defend the action is affirmed where: 1) the imposition of all expenses on a plaintiff in an ex parte proceeding, and regardless of whether he wins or loses,does not constitute fee-shifting that implicates the American Rule but rather an unconditional compensatory charge imposed on a dissatisfied applicant who elects to engage the PTO in a district court proceeding; and 2) this compensatory charge encompasses the PTO’s salary expenses for the attorneys and paralegals who represent the Director.
Source: findlaw.com