The Archwell office, associated with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, has found itself in a troubling situation as it was forcibly shut down during a raid by the Beverly Hills Police.
What makes this even more perplexing is that the office was linked to a seemingly fictitious company, devoid of any staff.
Meghan Markle and Harry faced a major setback in their quest to trademark Archwell in the United States.
Their trademark application was rejected due to its vague nature and the absence of their signatures.
Additionally, they failed to fulfill all the required fees.
According to documents obtained by The Sun, the application was submitted on March 3 under the name of Cobblestone Lane, LLC, registered in Delaware but tied to the Beverly Hills offices of a prominent Hollywood figure who has worked with Meghan for years.
However, a surprising turn of events unfolded during a government investigation of the Beverly Hills office.
It was discovered that the office was completely deserted, with no employees, computers, or documents.
It appeared to be a phantom company.
Adding to the intrigue, French journalists who ventured into the empty Beverly Hills office space found that no one had ever been present to handle any filings.
A recorded video of this visit depicted Archwell as a project seemingly used for suspicious financial activities.
Strangely, Harry never seemed to direct substantial funds into it, instead taking on roles at other questionable organizations like BetterUp, without connecting them to the successful Invictus initiative.
An examiner was assigned to review their trademark application on May 26 and subsequently issued an irregularity notice from the U.S. Department of Commerce, addressing a slew of errors.
These errors encompassed the vagueness of their plans, prompting the couple’s attorney, Marjorie Winter Norman, to make the required changes by August 22.
Otherwise, the application would be abandoned.
The International Bureau also deemed the list of goods and services associated with the non-profit too vague for proper classification.
Furthermore, the notice highlighted the need for clarification regarding the content featured on their website, specifically related to philanthropy, monetary giving, volunteering, career opportunities, and International Class 35.
Megan and Harry were also instructed to pay additional fees for processing their application.
On June 2, a non-final action was issued, allowing the trademark to remain inactive until the necessary amendments were submitted.
The examiner noted that the initial application lacked a signature, rendering it improperly verified, which was later corrected.
It’s important to note that even meticulously drafted trademark applications may face initial rejection by the USPTO, with approximately one in five applications failing their first examination.
In a separate development, leaked tax filings for 2021 from the Archwell Foundation disclosed that less than a quarter of its income was allocated to charitable endeavors.
Furthermore, Meghan and Harry dedicated the equivalent of just one hour per week to work on their charitable foundation, Archwell.