Legal
Guides

Registration is where protection begins, not where it ends. This category covers the legal situations a registered trademark runs into: what infringement of trademark rights is, which acts constitute an offence and what sanctions apply, how to proceed against a business using your mark without permission, what to do before filing suit, and how counterfeit goods are seized at customs.

Protection does not run in one direction only: a registered mark that is not put to genuine use becomes open to a revocation request five years after registration. This section also explains why the difference between a trade name, a business name and a trademark matters, how well-known status is obtained, where collective and certification marks are used, and what options you have if someone else has registered your brand name.