摘要：Under traditional trademark law, color received protection as a trademark only if it were combined with a symbol or design) Itwas not until 1985 ,*_hat the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit broke with the traditional common law rule and precipitated a split by allowing registration of a color by itself as a trademark. 2 Last term in Qualitex Co. v. Jacobson Products Co.,3 the Supreme Court finally resolved the split of authoriff in a unanimous opinion holding that color may be protected as a trademark when it satisfies all of the normal statutory requirements. The Court's opinion follows both the text and intent of the Lanham Trademark AeP as well as the fundamental principles of trademark law. This Note explores the factors which were responsible for the adherence to the traditional rule in most of the circuits over the last ninety years. Following a summary of relevant trademark law principles, this Note discusses the historical development of the traditional rule and its rejection by the Supreme Court in Qualite~ An • . J~'.. analysis of this history will reveal that most courts upheld the ttatiltional rule because of a failure:to recognize the radical nature of the Lanham ", \ . -, o • Act and because of undue rehanee on stare declsls.
