Romance writer's bid to stop authors from using word 'cocky' fails in court

Self-published author Faleena Hopkins asserted her right to the word, but judge calls attempt to stop other authors using it ‘weak’

Romance writers around the world can breathe a sigh of relief after a US court ruled that they can continue to use the adjective “cocky” in their book titles, after one author attempted to stop other writers from using the word.

In September 2017, self-published author Faleena Hopkins filed a trademark claim for the word “cocky” in relation to a romance novel series, which was registered by the US Patent and Trademark Office in April 2018. Only series can be registered as trademarks, not individual titles, and common words can’t be registered at all, unless the public associates it with a particular use.

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