About Trademarks

As a Registered Trademark Agent, I am fully certified to provide professional legal services in trademark practice. I am not a lawyer. Registered Trademark Agents provide a cost-effective alternative for Canadian and International brand owners to protect their trademarks. The professional credentials of Canadian Trademark Agents are recognized worldwide for trademark prosecution & enforcement. In fact, lawyers wanting to practice in trademarks in Canada are now required to be certified as Trademark Agents due to the highly specialized nature of trademark practice.

Trademark registration is a potentially complex legal process where filing errors can have unintended consequences. Certain errors may even jeopardize an Applicant's rights to use of its own trademark. There are also a number of required benchmarks prior to the successful completion of a trademark registration along a lengthy timeline. (currently 2.5 to 5 years).  We manage the entire process, ensuring your rights are appropriately protected in the most timely and cost-efficient manner. We can also execute an international trademark filing strategy for your business. 

I can act on your behalf in all matters before the Canadian Trademarks Office and manage your trademarks worldwide. Are you seeking trademark registration because you are aware of or anticipating an issue that may require legal advice?  Perhaps you have a portfolio that also includes patents or industrial designs that you want to manage under one umbrella? Are you in conflict with another party over trademark rights; or looking into licensing or selling existing assets? These may be examples where it make more sense to hire a lawyer who specializes in intellectual property. And whenever it is in your best interests, I am happy to provide a referral.

There are many reasons a trademark that is fine for use as the name of a product or service may not be capable of being registered as a trademark; and there are also trademarks that are entirely unavailable for commercial use.  At Evermark, we can provide a professional opinion on whether or not your trademark can be successful in the registration process.  We create a report to assess the viability of a trademark and identify risks - before you invest a lot more time or money.  We do not pursue trademark registration without advising our clients of the potential obstacles and the probability of success. 

This depends on whether you are using your incorporated business name in commerce.  If you are using the name in a trademark manner (i.e. a consumer-facing brand), it is not adequately protected by incorporation alone. Trademark registration provides a more prohibitive level of naming protection than incorporation. ​In other words, an incorporated business name identifies the name of a business in the relevant jurisdiction but it does not protect rights to its commercial use for a specific product or service - that's where trademark registration comes in.

The most common types of trademarks are a word or words, a phrase (slogan, tagline), a logo or a combination thereof and serve to differentiate the products and services of one business from another. The function of a trademark is to be a source-identifier for the consumer, to prevent confusion in the marketplace (which business is providing the product or service)?  A trademark is valid and enforceable only in connection to its use in commerce with specific products and services. For that reason, a business name (even a corporate name) may or may not be a trademark and may or may not be trademarkable.

The better question might be: what will not registering your trademark potentially cost you? Imagine the effort of building your unique, recognizable, compelling brand, only to later find out that you have no legal right to use it?  How about the costs of a complete re-brand or the fees to respond to legal proceedings initiated by another party?  Considering the exclusive rights granted, trademark registration may be the best business investment you will ever make, and one of the few business expenses that is guaranteed to recoup its value upon the sale of a successful business.

Trademark registration is the best and most cost-effective way to protect the most valuable business asset - your brand. Trademark registration provides: 1. Immediate, compelling evidence of ownership and exclusive legal rights, nationwide. 2. Unlike other forms of intellectual property protection, perpetual and ongoing rights to a trademark with valid commercial use.  3. Peace of mind for the business owner and a powerful tool against infringement and brand confusion. 4. An effective marketing tool as brand recognition grows, and a quantifiable, transferrable financial asset.

No. Trademarks must be registered in each jurisdiction, although having a registered trademark in Canada can facilitate the process in other countries.. As your business expands beyond Canada, we manage the entire process as your single point of contact, instructing our trusted international partners.  We also employ best practices to control the costs and provide timely and appropriate protection in every market. 

You bet. Any entity that believes it has good faith entitlement to a trademark can apply to register it to protect their trademark rights. We encourage you to educate yourself before starting the process by taking advantage of the online resources offered by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office; and don't forget to read our articles and blog posts. And if you have an issue along the way, we can always step in to assist.  

*The cost of a completed trademark application varies as every trademark matter is unique.  We always provide a cost estimate for the entire process prior to engagement.