Trade Marks
Latest posts
Debunking Trademark Myths: Protect Your Brand
Introduction In the competitive business landscape, protecting your brand is crucial for long-term success. Many entrepreneurs and business owners fall victim to common trademark myths, assuming that their unique business name or online presence is sufficient to safeguard their intellectual property. However, this article aims to debunk these misconceptions and shed light on the importance […]
Stealing Your Identity: How to Spot and Stop Trademark Infringement (Part 2)
Once you become aware of a potential infringement of your sign, then you have to assess the nature and the possible consequences of that infringement. This can be done through the following steps: 1. You first Above all, understand your right – become familiar with the territory in which your trade mark is registered, its registration […]
Stealing Your Identity: How to Spot and Stop Trademark Infringement (Part 1)
After going through all the effort of registering your trade mark and using it, now comes the hardest part: monitoring the market for potential trade mark infringements. What is infringement? Infringement is a violation of someone’s rights, or in trade mark terms, the unauthorised use by a third party of a trade mark that […]
How to prove use of a registered trade mark in the European Union?
Know your trade mark inside out – the devil is in the details. What have you registered as a trade mark? Is it a name? Or a name and a logo? What are the details that characterise the logo? For example: The symbol above could be described as a colourful, striped apple with a leaf […]
The importance of USE in the European Union
The use of a trade mark in commerce is not a requirement for trade mark registration or renewal in the European Union. However, a lack of use can lead to a trade mark right being ineffective against third parties. This means that you might not be able to stop competitors from using/registering a similar or […]
Trade marks in the European Union
There are four routes to trade mark registration in the European Union. The route you choose will depend on both your immediate business needs and your plans for the future. It is important to note that the four routes are complementary, partly interchangeable and work in parallel to one another. We go through each of […]
What Every Business Owner Should Know About Trade Mark Protection
Trade marks protect several different things. Trade mark owners have an exclusive right to prevent others from using their mark in the course of trade but trade mark protection is territorial in nature. In other words, the scope of protection of registered trade marks is limited and depends on the place of registration. For example, national […]
Trade Mark Watch: The Key to Keeping Your Business Safe
Registering your trade mark is not enough to properly defend it. Once your brand is registered, it is important that you “monitor” the trade mark registers and the market for any similar or identical trade marks. As a brand owner, you have to make sure no one tries to register an identical or similar trade […]
How can I register a trade mark?
Trade marks are registered through an application form at the relevant intellectual property office (e.g. EUIPO). Such application must fulfil several requirements in order to be registered. Namely, the sign must be: Distinctive – think of the extraordinary aspect in respect of the products/services to be traded with that sign and in respect of other […]
What is a trade mark?
A trade mark helps your customers identify you by distinguishing the goods and services of your business from those of your competitors. Moreover, trade marks may fulfil other functions such as advertisement or goodwill, encapsulate your mission and values, and turn your business into a really valuable asset. From a legal point of view, a […]