A trademark cease-and-desist letter is a written warning that formally tells the person believed to be infringing a registered trademark to stop the use and to meet certain demands. In Turkey, where it is usually called an ihtarname and often served through a notary public, it has no mandatory form under the law and is not a precondition for filing a lawsuit; however, it documents that the other side knows about the infringement, opens the door to settlement and is used as evidence in any later lawsuit. A good trademark cease-and-desist letter contains the registration details, a concrete record of the infringement, the legal basis under Industrial Property Law No. 6769 (SMK), proportionate demands and a reasonable deadline.
What follows covers, in order, the purpose of the letter, when to send it and when not to, a preparation checklist, delivery channels such as a notary and KEP, content and a table of demands, a fill-in template, choosing a deadline and the risks of an unjustified warning.
What Does a Trademark Cease-and-Desist Letter Achieve?
Beyond being the cheapest way to stop an infringement, a cease-and-desist letter serves four legal functions:
- It documents knowledge: SMK Art. 29/1-c makes the liability of those who sell, distribute or hold counterfeit goods for commercial purposes depend on whether they "knew or should have known". Sales after service of the letter are treated as made knowingly, and the "I had no idea" defense weakens.
- It prepares the ground for settlement: A significant share of infringements, especially involving small businesses acting in good faith, is resolved at the warning stage. Solutions such as a transition period, selling off stock or a name change are discussed at this point.
- It creates evidence: A letter sent through a notary puts its date and content on official record; the recipient's reply is often evidence in its own right.
- It shows you did not stay silent: SMK Art. 25/6 provides that an earlier trademark owner who knowingly remains silent for five years about the use of a later mark loses its invalidation claim unless there is bad faith. Regular warnings are the record of your stance against that defense.
A cease-and-desist letter is not a sanction; the sanctions are lawsuits, criminal complaints and platform notices. The full roadmap for a trademark owner facing infringement is explained in our article someone is using my trademark, what should I do.
When Should You Send a Cease-and-Desist Letter, and When Not?
The short answer: if the infringement is clear, the evidence is secure and the risk of the other side destroying evidence is low, a letter is usually the first step. If any of these conditions is missing, another step should come first.
Situations Where Sending One Makes Sense
A local business starting to trade under a similar name, a single marketplace seller using your mark without permission, a domain name or social media account opened with your mark, and users believed to be acting in good faith are suitable cases for a warning. In these files the aim is usually not punishment but ending the use quickly and permanently.
Situations Where Another Step Should Come First
If counterfeit goods are being manufactured or stored on a commercial scale, a letter may give the other side the opportunity to sell off stock and destroy evidence. In these files, a court order preserving evidence or a preliminary injunction (SMK Art. 159), or a search and seizure following a criminal complaint, is considered first; how the criminal route works is explained in our article on criminal penalties for trademark infringement. Situations in which your own right may be weak should also be examined before any warning: if you rely on a mark that has been registered for more than five years but not used, the other side can raise the defense of proof of use under SMK Art. 29/2.
Preparation Checklist Before Sending the Letter
Before drafting the text, clarify these six points:
- Registration status: Is the mark in force, in which classes and for which goods or services is it registered? Does the use you claim is infringing fall within that scope?
- Identity of the recipient: Are the trade name, address and tax details correct? Does the other side have an identical or similar trademark application? To find the owner and attorney of record, you can follow the steps in our trademark owner search guide.
- Evidence: Screen captures showing date and address, the invoice for a test purchase, photographs and, where necessary, a notarial record should be completed before the warning.
- Nature of the goods: Is the product being sold genuine? The resale of genuine goods placed on the market by the right holder or with its consent may fall under trademark exhaustion; in that case a "counterfeit" allegation turns out to be unjustified.
- The other side's rights: Does the recipient have use that began before yours, an earlier registration or trade name rights? Under SMK Art. 155, a later registration cannot be raised as a defense in an infringement action brought by the holder of an earlier right; in the reverse situation, the risk is yours.
- Signs of bad faith: If the recipient is trying to register your mark in its own name, plan the opposition or invalidation options together with the warning; the patterns and deadlines are covered in our article on bad-faith trademark filings.
How Should the Letter Be Delivered? Notary, KEP and Lawyer's Letter
The law prescribes no mandatory method of delivery for a trademark warning; what drives the choice is being able to prove the delivery and the content later. The three main channels in practice are:
- Notarized letter (noter ihtarnamesi): The most common route, with the strongest evidential value. The notary serves the letter on the recipient, and the service record has the status of an official document. The cost varies with the number of pages and the number of recipients served.
- Registered electronic mail (KEP): Article 18/3 of the Turkish Commercial Code lists notary, registered letter, telegram and KEP with a secure electronic signature for notices between merchants concerning default, termination and rescission. A trademark warning is not one of those listed notices; however, if the recipient is a merchant and its KEP address is known, it is a strong alternative in terms of proving delivery and content.
- Lawyer's letter or email: Fast and low-cost; suitable for first contact and for correspondence with marketplaces or platforms. Because proof of delivery remains weak, it should be backed up with a notarized letter if it does not produce results.
What Should a Trademark Cease-and-Desist Letter Contain?
The content determines both the persuasive power of the letter and its evidential value in a later lawsuit. The basic elements are: the full identity of the parties; the registration details of the mark (registration number, filing and registration dates, classes, relevant goods and services); a record of the infringing use with its date, place and form; the legal basis; the demands; the deadline given for them; a reservation of rights; and the annexes.
The legal basis section usually cites SMK Art. 7 (rights conferred by registration and the uses that can be prohibited) and Art. 29 (acts constituting infringement). If the use takes the form of a domain name or keyword, Art. 7/3-d is also cited; if the mark is used as a trade name or business name, Art. 7/3-e. The demands, in turn, should be written together with their legal basis, in a proportionate and enforceable way:
| Demand | Legal basis | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Ending the use | SMK Art. 7/2, Art. 29, Art. 149/1-c | State clearly which sign, which product and which channel |
| A written undertaking not to repeat the conduct | SMK Art. 149/1-b (preventing likely infringement) | Adding a penalty clause to the undertaking makes it more enforceable |
| Disclosure of stock quantities and recall from the market | SMK Art. 149/1-d and (f) | Seizure and destruction require a court order; the letter asks for information and recall |
| Transfer of the domain name or closure of the social media account | SMK Art. 7/3-d | Record the domain and account details, registration date and content |
| Changing the trade name or business name | SMK Art. 7/3-e | Registry changes take time; set the deadline accordingly |
| Withdrawal of a trademark application | SMK Art. 28/5 | The 2-month opposition period from Bulletin publication (Art. 18) does not wait for a reply to your letter |
| Compensation for damage | SMK Art. 149/1-ç, Art. 150, Art. 151 | Stating an amount is not mandatory; reserving the right is enough |
How the compensation claim is calculated, and which method is advantageous in which situation, is explained separately in our article on calculating trademark infringement damages.
Sample Trademark Cease-and-Desist Letter Template
The template below is a general structure to be used by filling in the fields in square brackets. Because the facts of each file differ, the text must be adapted to the specific case:
- Heading and sender: "WARNING NOTICE (İHTARNAME)" — Sender: [trade name / full name], [address], [tax number]; attorney, if any: [full name, address].
- Recipient: [trade name / full name], [address for service].
- Subject: "Demand to cease infringement of the registered trademark [MARK]."
- Trademark right: "The sender is the owner of the trademark [MARK], registered with TÜRKPATENT (Turkish Patent and Trademark Office) under number [registration number] in classes [class numbers] for [goods and services] (Annex 1)."
- Record of infringement: "On [date], it was established that [goods or services] are offered under the designation [sign used] via [website / store address / marketplace store name] (Annex 2)."
- Legal assessment: "The use in question is made without the sender's consent and constitutes infringement of the trademark right under Articles 7 and 29 of Industrial Property Law No. 6769."
- Demands: "(a) that use of the designation [sign] on [product / channel] cease, (b) that the quantity of stock in your possession be disclosed and products on the market be recalled, (c) that use of [domain name / account name] cease, (d) that a written undertaking be given not to use it in the future."
- Deadline: "That written confirmation that the demands have been met be provided within [… days] of service of this notice."
- Reservation of rights: "Failing this, you are hereby notified that civil and criminal remedies under the SMK and related legislation will be pursued, and that all rights of action and claims, including material and moral damages and damages for harm to reputation, are reserved."
- Annexes: Annex 1 [registration certificate / register extract], Annex 2 [records of findings, invoice, photographs].
- Date and signature: [date], [signature of the sender or its attorney].
The text should contain no insults, threats or unverified accusations. Labels such as "fraudster" or "swindler" do not make the letter more persuasive; on the contrary, they hand the other side a legal weapon.
How Much Time Should the Recipient Be Given?
The law sets no deadline for a trademark warning; the period is set reasonably according to the nature of the work each demand requires. A marketplace listing can be removed within hours, whereas changing signage, packaging or a trade name takes longer. Unrealistically short deadlines make settlement harder; unnecessarily long ones can amount to tolerating continued infringement.
Be careful with two time limits. First, the offense of trademark infringement is prosecuted only upon complaint, and under Article 73 of the Turkish Criminal Code the complaint must be filed within six months of learning of the act and the perpetrator; correspondence over the letter does not stop that period. Second, a warning letter is not among the grounds for interrupting limitation listed in Article 154 of the Turkish Code of Obligations.
What Are the Risks of an Unjustified Warning?
A cease-and-desist letter is not a one-way pressure tool; if it is poorly constructed, it can backfire on the sender. The main risks are the following.
Unfair Competition and Disparagement
Article 55/1-a of the Turkish Commercial Code lists, among the forms of unfair competition, disparaging others or their goods, work products and business through false, misleading or unnecessarily hurtful statements. Spreading an unsupported infringement allegation to a competitor's customers, dealers or marketplace can be assessed under this provision. Direct your allegation only to the recipient and only to the extent you can prove it.
Action for a Declaration of Non-Infringement
Under SMK Art. 154, an interested party may ask the right holder for its opinion on whether its activity constitutes infringement; if no reply is given within one month or the reply is not accepted, it may file an action for a declaration that its acts do not constitute infringement. This action can also be filed together with an invalidation action. A person against whom an infringement action has already been filed, however, cannot bring it. The practical consequence: a weak letter can lead the other side to start the litigation on its own terms.
Counterattack: Invalidation and the Non-Use Defense
A party receiving a letter may file an invalidation action if it believes your mark should never have been registered; for registrations older than five years, it may demand proof of use. Warnings based on classes you do not use, in particular, can trigger a process that ends with your mark being partially revoked or invalidated.
Warning Letters Based on an Unregistered Mark or a Pending Application
The infringement provisions of the SMK protect registered trademarks. For a warning based on an unregistered sign, the only basis can be the unfair competition provisions of the Turkish Commercial Code, and the burden of proof is heavy. If your application has been published in the Bulletin, under SMK Art. 7/4 an action for damages can be brought for acts after publication; however, the court cannot rule before the registration is published. In this situation, the letter is still valuable to put the other side on notice of the application, but the phrase "registered trademark" should not be used.
What Happens After the Letter?
There are three possibilities. If the recipient meets the demands, the settlement is put in writing and, after some time, you check again that the use has actually ended. If the recipient sends a reply disputing the claims, those claims are reassessed together with your own right; a reply sometimes reveals the other side's earlier use or that the product is genuine. If no reply comes or the use continues, you move to enforcement routes such as a lawsuit, a criminal complaint and platform notices; how an infringement action is built is explained in our article on how to file a trademark lawsuit.
The date of service of the letter, the scope of the infringement and the other side's reply become the core documents of the file at every later stage. For a refresher on the legal framework of infringement, see our article on what trademark infringement is. To have the drafting, service and next steps handled by one team, our legal protection service aligns the warning with your litigation strategy.
Conclusion: Key Takeaways
- A trademark cease-and-desist letter is not mandatory, but it documents knowledge, facilitates settlement and creates evidence.
- Evidence should be gathered before the letter; for commercial-scale counterfeiting, preserving evidence, a preliminary injunction or the criminal route should be considered first.
- A good letter contains registration details, a concrete record of the infringement, the SMK Art. 7 and Art. 29 basis, proportionate demands, a reasonable deadline and a reservation of rights.
- A notary is the channel with the strongest evidential value; between merchants, KEP is a strong alternative.
- A warning letter does not stop the complaint period and does not interrupt limitation.
- An unsupported warning can open the door to an unfair competition claim and an SMK Art. 154 action; check in advance whether the product is genuine and how strong your own right is.
Shall We Prepare Your Cease-and-Desist Letter Together?
Share your registration details, the records of the infringement and what you know about the other side; together we will assess whether this is a file that calls for a warning, and which channel and demands are appropriate. For an initial assessment, reach us via our contact page.
