Trade mark registration
We can guide you through the process of registering a trade mark, allowing you to protect your brand in just a few simple steps. When you choose to work with us, we ensure that your application is filed correctly and with the relevant Registry.
Registering a trade mark
In your application, you will provide details of the name and address of the person the trade mark is to be assigned to and the services and goods you wish to protect.
We will then review your application using a high-level automated search. Our system highlights any obvious issues with your application. There are many reasons as to why the Trade Mark Registry might reject an application, including:
1.) That the application is too descriptive; for example, they might reject an application to register NUTTY for nuts. You can sometimes overcome this problem by adding something non-descriptive.
2.) Deceptive of the product/service applied for. For example, an application for GOLDiful for plastic jewellery may be rejected because people would think that the jewellery was made of gold.
3.) A banned type of trade mark, for example, names relating to the British royal family or anything that includes state emblems like flags, aren’t allowed.
If the Registry rejects your trade mark on this basis, they will not refund the application fees. We will let you know if this happens and give you the option to either take advice on whether we might persuade the Registry to change their mind or abandon the application.
4.) Offensive, such as pornographic or criminal words.
If your trade mark application fails on this basis, although you will have paid the government fee, we will waive our fee on your next application, provided you re-file within 30 working days.
FAQs
A trade mark is something that helps to identify a brand, product or service of a business. Because a trade mark can be a valuable business asset, it must be protected to prevent others from using it to sell their own products or services. A trade mark can take many forms and may be simply the name of the business, product or service or can include:
- Letters
- Numerals
- Designs
- Colours
- Sounds
- Shapes (including 3D shapes)
- Movement
- Smells
To put it simply, if you do not register a trade mark you are putting your brand at risk. Someone else can use elements of what identifies your products or services or even register a trade mark for a name similar or identical to the one you are operating under. When you register a trade mark, you give yourself the tools to prevent someone else from using your brand indicators and to take legal action against imitators.
Copyright and trade marks both protect specific creations but typically apply to different types of work. Copyright protects intellectual or creative works, such as literature, music and art. On the other hand, trade marks typical protect commercial names, products, services, logos and other brand indicators.
There are several steps you need to go through when applying to register a trade mark. Brandability makes registering a trade mark simple, and you can even do so online in just a few steps. There are three stages:
- Checking whether your brand qualifies to be registered as a trade mark
- Applying to register the trade mark
- Responding to any objections to your trade mark registration
The Brexit transitional period has now ended, and as a result, there will be some changes to how EU trade mark rights are registered and enforced by UK businesses. Where you have a registered EU trade mark, it will have been cloned automatically creating comparable rights in the UK. For new applications, you will need to make separate applications to register an EU trade mark and a UK trade mark.