The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (“CIPO”) adopted the international Nice Classification for trademark applications in 2015. As of January 1, 2017, CIPO applies the 11th Edition of the Nice Classification to all New applications. If you have filed your application prior to January 1, 2017, and have chosen to submit a Revised application, you may choose… Continue reading Nice Classification for Canadian Trademarks
Author: David Michaels
David Michaels, J.D., B.Eng., CHRM is a trained attorney who holds certificates in Canadian Trademark Law (2012) and Canadian Patent Law (1996) from McGill University. He has worked in the area of trademark law in Canada since 1995 and in the USA since 1993.
David is a legal blogger, brand consultant, an eCommerce entrepreneur, and an aeronautical engineer.
http://ca.linkedin.com/in/davidtmichaels/
Warning & Disclaimer: The pages, articles and comments on trademarkpro.ca do not constitute legal advice, nor do they create any attorney-client relationship. The articles published express the author's notes of the current state of trademark law and should not be attributed as opinions of the author, his employer, clients or the sponsors of trademarkpro.ca. The author does not warrant that these notes are up-to-date. Trademark law is constantly changing and it varies between jurisdictions and even within jurisdictions. This website should not be relied upon.
Domain Names and Trademark Infringement
Owning and using domain names is not automatically trademark infringement. A trademark is not a monopoly of all domain names with the trademark. Some trademark bullies have tried to claim that they have a monopoly of all domain names containing their registered trademark. Often, domain name holders give in to these bullies. However, some have… Continue reading Domain Names and Trademark Infringement
Property Rights in Domain Names
Domain name registrants have property rights in most types of domain names comprising incorporeal rights and equitable rights. Whether there are property rights in .ca domain names is still in question. Domain names are not corporeal property. You can’t touch or hold domain names. However, anyone can use a domain name to find a website that… Continue reading Property Rights in Domain Names
Generic Trademark
A generic trademark merely describes the goods or services. Specifically, a mark is merely descriptive under Trademark Act Section 2(e)(1), 15 U.S.C. 1052(e)(1), if it describes an ingredient, quality, characteristic, function, feature, purpose or use of the relevant goods. See In re Gyulay, 820 F.2d 1216, 3 USPQ2d 1009 (Fed. Cir. 1987); In re Bed… Continue reading Generic Trademark
Canadian Trademark Cases
The Leading Cited Canadian Trademark Cases are: Re/Max International, Inc. v. Metro/Max Realty Inc. (1997) 82. C.P.R. (3d) 110 (T.M.O.B.) Marineland Inc. v. Marine Wonderland and Animal Park Ltd. (1974) 16 C.P.R. (2d) 97 (F.C.T.D.) Goodall Rubber Co. v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. (1999) 3 C.P.R. (4th) 393 (T.M.O.B.) Tone-Craft Paints Ltd. v. Du-Chem Paint Co. Ltd. (1969)… Continue reading Canadian Trademark Cases
Black v Molson Canada domain dispute
Douglas Black sued Molson Canada in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to decide their domain dispute. Black v Molson Canada, 60 O.R. (3d) 457, [2002] O.J. No. 2820 Court File No. 02-CV-231-828CM3 Ontario Superior Court of Justice B. Wright J. July 18, 2002 Intellectual property — Trademarks — Domain Name — Applicant registering domain… Continue reading Black v Molson Canada domain dispute
Official Marks Canada
Official Marks in Canada are trademarks that are used and adopted by a public authority under government control. A public authority has been described as an entity that is subject to government control and engages in activities that benefit the public (United States Postal Service v. Canada Post Corporation, 2007 FCA 10). Trademarks Act, Section… Continue reading Official Marks Canada
Trade-marks Act Canada
Click to see the Trade-marks Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. T-13) current to 2015-03-03 and last amended on 2015-01-01. Previous Versions Some of the amendments to the Trade-marks Act, including changing the title of the Act to the Trademarks Act, have not taken effect yet. The Trade-Marks Act was amended on December 31, 2013, before it… Continue reading Trade-marks Act Canada
Changes to Canadian Trademark Law 2014
Major Changes to Canadian Trademark Law happened when Canada updated its Trademarks Act effective June 19, 2014. Some of the minor changes are: Trade-mark became trademark; Wares became goods; Some of the major changes are: A mark becomes a sign, which is far more expansive; The concept of a “proposed trade-mark” is gone! The definition… Continue reading Changes to Canadian Trademark Law 2014
Trademark Offices
Trademark Offices Canadian Intellectual Property Office – Trade-mark Office http://www.cipo.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointernet-internetopic.nsf/eng/h_wr00002.html EU Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/index.en.do Japan Patent Office http://www.jpo.go.jp/ UK Intellectual Property Office http://www.jpo.go.jp/ United States Patent and Trademark Office http://www.uspto.gov/ World Intellectual Property Organization http://www.wipo.int/
Trademark Associations
Trademark Associations American Intellectual Property Law Association http://www.aipla.org/ Anti Copying In Design http://acid.eu.com/ British Brands Group http://www.britishbrandsgroup.org.uk/ Business Europe http://www.businesseurope.eu/Content/Default.asp? European Brands Association http://www.aim.be/ European Communities Trade Mark Association http://www.ecta.org/ INDICAM http://www.indicam.it/ Intellectual Property Owners Association http://www.ipo.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home International Intellectual Property Institute http://www.iipi.org/index.asp International Trademark Association http://www.inta.org/ Licensing Executives Society International http://www.lesi.org/ Licensing Executives Society (USA… Continue reading Trademark Associations
Trademark Blogs
Trademark Blogs: Anticipate This http://anticipatethis.wordpress.com/ Australian Trademarks Law Blog http://www.australiantrademarkslawblog.com/ BLOG@IP::JUR http://www.ipjur.com/03.php3 Brand Channel http://www.brandchannel.com/ Broken Symmetry http://brokensymmetry.typepad.com/ Canadian Trademark Blogs: Canadian Trademark Blog http://www.trademarkblog.ca/ Canadian Intellectual Property Practice by Alan Macek http://www.ippractice.ca/ China Trademark Blog China Law Blog http://www.chinalawblog.com/ Class 46 http://www.marques.org/class46/ Class 99 http://class-99.blogspot.com/ Eric Goldman http://blog.ericgoldman.org/ Intellectual Asset Management http://www.iam-magazine.com/ Intellectual Property Watch… Continue reading Trademark Blogs
How parts.com got registered as a US trademark
How PARTS.COM, LLC registered parts.com as a US trademark on the principle register in the USA. US trademark US Serial Number: 77219341 Application Filing Date: Jun. 29, 2007 US Registration Number: 3500783 Registration Date:Sep. 16, 2008 Note: Yahoo! Inc. commenced a trademark cancellation proceeding (Number: 92057802) after PARTS.COM, LLC sued Yahoo for trademark infringement in… Continue reading How parts.com got registered as a US trademark
Trademarks Registered in the US
Trademarks registered in the US may be registered either on the Principle register or on the Supplemental Register. Most trademark owners would prefer that their trademark be registered on the principle register, but that is not always possible. A registration for a trademark may be refused for registration on the principle register because the proposed… Continue reading Trademarks Registered in the US
What Can I Trademark?
Trademarks are the best way to protect words, phrases, and logos, in most countries. Trademarks are registered on a country by country basis, except in Europe where you may register a EU Community trademark or a trademark in one or more EU countries. There is no such thing as a global trademark, but there is a… Continue reading What Can I Trademark?