Once your trademark is registered, you will need to be vigilant to effectively protect your trademark against third-parties. It can be a time-consumer endeavour, but you will have to have a plan in place to deal with any other third-party that may infringe or damage your trademark.
There are many forms of trademark enforcement, and an experienced trademark attorney can help you enforce your trademark in view of your budget and your needs. Without enforcement, you effectively give up the rights associated with your registered trademark.
The primary non-litigation means of enforcement include:
Monitoring and Surveillance
Once your trademark is registered, it is advantageous to continuously monitor the market for potential instances of infringement or counterfeiting of your trademark rights. We can help you monitor the market and investigate infringing activities.
Cease & desist letter
An effective cease & desist letter notifies the infringing party of the infringement and provides the basis for your claim of infringement. We can help you prepare the letter while keeping in mind the particular facts and your specific needs.
Take-down notice
A big portion of infringement activities happen in online marketplaces, for example, Amazon and Ebay. Many online marketplaces have trademark enforcement procedures for trademark owners to report infringing products. However, these procedures may take a long time because of the volume of complaints the online marketplaces receive. We help you navigate the process to avoid common issues that may cause delays, resulting in lost sales to infringing parties.
Negotiating settlements
A cease & desist letter or take-down notice merely starts the enforcement process. Your primary goal is to stop the infringement from occurring, and sometimes you achieve this goal by negotiating with the infringing party. For example, the other party may agree to stop using a trademark if you promise not to sue them for past infringement. We help you negotiation acceptable terms to stop the infringing activities.
Customs registration
We help you register your trademark with Canada Border Services Agency to prevent counterfeit goods from being imported or exported.