Trademark infringement is the use of a registered trademark without the proprietor's consent. Which acts amount to infringement is set out in Article 29 of the Industrial Property Code (No. 6769).
The concept has two fundamental limits, and both need to be understood:
- The mark must be registered. The infringement provisions and criminal protection apply to registered marks.
- The use must be in respect of goods and services within the scope of registration. The exception is well-known marks.
Acts Amounting to Infringement (Article 29)
- Unauthorised use of the mark. Using the mark in the ways set out in Article 7 without the proprietor's consent. This covers use on the product, on packaging, on signage, on documents, in advertising and online.
- Counterfeiting. Imitating the mark by using it or an indistinguishably similar sign.
- Dealing in counterfeit goods. Selling, distributing, holding for commercial purposes, importing or exporting, using commercially, or offering to contract in respect of goods that the person knows or ought to know carry a counterfeit mark.
- Extending or transferring licensed rights without authorisation. Rights granted by the proprietor under licence being widened or assigned to third parties without permission. The rules governing licence relationships are set out in Trademark Licence Agreements.
Identity and Confusing Similarity: Two Forms
Identity — outright copying
Use of the mark itself or of an indistinguishably similar sign. Detection is comparatively straightforward: placed side by side, the two signs cannot be told apart.
Confusing similarity
Use that is not identical but gives rise to a likelihood of confusion among consumers. The assessment here rests on the same criteria as the similarity examination in applications: visual, phonetic and conceptual similarity, the dominant element, overall impression, and proximity of goods and services.
The criteria are explained in Likelihood of Confusion.
One point deserves emphasis: the law does not require confusion to have occurred. A likelihood suffices. "Nobody has confused them so far" is not a defence on its own.
Extended Protection for Well-Known Marks
As a rule, protection is limited to the goods and services covered by the registration. For well-known marks that limit may be exceeded: where use would take unfair advantage of the mark's reputation, be detrimental to its repute, or dilute its distinctive character, use in different goods and services may also be actionable.
How well-known status is acquired and proved is a separate subject: What Is a Well-Known Trademark?
What Does Not Amount to Infringement?
Not every similar use is infringing. Knowing the limits prevents both unnecessary disputes and false confidence:
- Use outside the scope. If your mark is registered only in class 25, use of the same name in an unrelated sector does not, as a rule, constitute infringement.
- Honest use. A person using their own name or address, giving information about the kind, quality or purpose of goods, or referring to the mark to indicate the intended purpose of a product — particularly for spare parts and accessories — cannot be prevented, provided the use accords with honest practice.
- Exhaustion of rights. Resale of goods put on the market in Türkiye by the proprietor or with their consent cannot, as a rule, be prevented.
- Use by an earlier right holder. Use founded on a right that arose before yours.
The Proof-of-Use Defence: The Other Side's Strongest Card
There is something a proprietor asserting infringement needs to know: the defendant may raise the proof-of-use provision in Article 19 as a defence (Article 29/2).
If your mark has been registered for more than five years, the other side may require you to prove that you have genuinely used it for the relevant goods and services. If you cannot, your claim may be dismissed.
The practical consequence: using your mark is necessary not only to avoid revocation but to be able to enforce your rights. See The Use Requirement and the Five-Year Rule.
What a Proprietor Can Claim
| Claim | What it achieves |
|---|---|
| Cessation and prevention of infringement | Bringing the use to an end |
| Removal of the infringement | Seizure and destruction of goods, packaging and means of production |
| Pecuniary damages | Compensation for loss suffered |
| Non-pecuniary damages | Harm to the mark's reputation |
| Interim injunction | Halting sales without waiting for judgment |
| Publication of the judgment | Correcting the misapprehension in the market |
The competent court is the Civil Court for Intellectual and Industrial Property Rights. For how proceedings work see How to File a Trademark Lawsuit.
Infringement Is Also a Criminal Offence
Alongside civil proceedings, trademark infringement gives rise to criminal liability. Under Article 30, a person who infringes a registered trademark right by identity or confusing similarity and produces, sells, imports or exports goods is liable to imprisonment and a judicial fine. The offence is subject to complaint and the mark must be registered in Türkiye.
The criminal dimension — the elements of the offence, the complaint period, search and seizure — is dealt with separately in Criminal Penalties for Trademark Infringement.
If You Encounter Infringement
For the order of steps and the documents needed at each stage, see Someone Is Using My Trademark — What Should I Do?
Detecting infringement early is a matter of monitoring. Regular watching of the bulletin and the market both stops similar applications before registration and catches actual use early: trademark watch.
If your mark is not yet registered, registration is the precondition for relying on the infringement provisions at all: our trademark registration team can handle the process.