Protecting your trading names and brands
This toolkit explains how you can stop other businesses from registering or using the same, or similar, names or brands to yours, and damaging your business. The more valuable your names and brands, the more important this is.
Also check your name is protected if you license an agent or distributor to use it, or they will be selling your branded goods and services. If you are entering into a joint venture or bringing a venture capitalist into the business, you may be asked to confirm your trading names are protected.
Use it
The best way to protect a name or brand is by using it. The more people associate a name with your business and/or your goods and services, the more the courts will recognise that you have legal rights in it, and punish infringers.
Register it
Consider protecting your names and brands by registering them. For example, if your name or brand - whether words, logos, pictures, letters, shapes, sounds and smells, or any combination of them - distinguishes your goods or services from those of other businesses, you can apply to register it as a UK trade mark at the UK Intellectual Property Office. That gives you a monopoly on use of your trade mark in relation to the goods and services you specify in your application, that the courts will enforce quickly and easily.
You could also register it as a domain name and (if it isn't already a company name) you could register it as a limited company name at Companies House. The tables below give more information on each option.
Monitor for infringers Consider using a 'watching' service to monitor the trade marks registry, Companies House and different domain name registries for infringers. As soon as an identical or similar name is applied for, or registered, you are notified so you can take action. Also monitor informally: use search engines to find mentions of the same or similar names on the internet, monitor the trade press and Yellow Pages, and listen for news on the grapevine from customers, business partners, suppliers and others. Deal with infringers Take fast, effective action against infringers. The longer you leave it, the more you are taken to have accepted the infringement. The same dispute will often give you several different legal ways to attack the infringer. You may be able to: You may need to take action in other countries if you are trading or represented there. Plan a strategy But beware. You will need a strategy. Different criteria will be applied in each forum - it's quite possible to win in one but lose in another. Also, different remedies are available, and there are different timescales for each set of proceedings. Pursuing every remedy at full speed might be appropriate - but equally, it could make the dispute messier than it needs to be, and give heart to the infringer. Consider your strategy carefully with an adviser, to: Turn the dispute to advantage Usually, you want to stop the infringer and get compensation. Another possible outcome is to license the infringer to use your name legitimately, in return for payment, so the dispute turns into a revenue stream for you. In any dispute, consider whether the infringer is a potential collaborator, rather than just the 'other side'. Squatters But some infringers will have registered your name simply to extract money from you. They have no other commercial interest in it. These can be tricky and untrustworthy individuals. It is sensible to use an adviser as an intermediary in negotiations with them, who knows the tricks of the trade. Click here to see a tabel setting out the different ways to protect your business names and brands, their effect, and costs and timescales for each. Always take advice on any name or brand dispute. You need judgement and experience on your side.
