A trademark is basically a mark that gives uniqueness to one’s business. It is registered for a particular business. Any unauthorised usage of the trademark is seen to be a trademark infringement. There can be confusion between two or more businesses because of similar trademarks. Thus, it is quite necessary to maintain the originality of the brand and have regulations for the protection of the same. The court has the right to put an end to the duplicate trademark when they find out about the infringement.
In the United Kingdom, trademarks are protected under the Trademark Act 1994. Infringement of trademark according to the act:
- Section 10(1) – it is considered trademark infringement when the mark is used with a little modification and is similar to the goods and services of the authorised trademark.
- Section 10(2)(a) & (b) – a person infringes the trademark when an unofficial third party uses the trademark, which can create quite a misunderstanding with consumers of the original trademark.
- Section 10(3) – the third party, while using the registered trademark of another, gains profit from it, then the party will be liable for further legal actions.
Establishing the fact that a trademark is infringed can be done by proving the following in a court of law:
• The owner of the trademark is required to show that his mark has a reputation in the UK.
• The unauthorized usage gives an unfair advantage to the other party. Unfair advantage refers to gaining profit because of the similarity of the registered trademark which has a good reputation in the market.
• The registered trademark has a damaging reputation because of unauthorized usage by the other party.
In conclusion, it is important to register the trademark before establishing the brand. Once you have a good reputation for your business for particular goods or services, the trademark can be infringed easily. Protection of your brand is a must. Infringement happens in almost every part of the world but how it is dealt with is important. UK law helps secure the mark against any unauthorized usage which results in a loss for the reputed brand.
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