UK trademark registration
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How to register a trademark in the UK?

In the United Kingdom, Common Law protects trademark owners. Registered trademarks coexist with unregistered trademarks. However, a UK trademark registration gives owners greater benefits than simple Common Law protection.

MAS LEGAL provides BrandToBe trademark search and registration package for your UK trademark registration.

What are Common Law trademarks?

In England and Wales, unregistered trademarks benefit from the action of passing off. The burden of proof lies on plaintiffs who must demonstrate that they have built up a reputation in the mark, the likelihood or actual confusion in the public, and a real and tangible probability of damage. A passing off action can be difficult to prove and is usually expensive.

Why is a registered trademark preferable?

A registered trademark in the United Kingdom gives greater benefits to its owner.

  • You have the possibility of putting the ® symbol next to your trademark in order to inform people about its registration and warn about its use. Note that it is an offence to use this symbol for a trademark that is not registered.
  • You have a legal presumption of ownership of the mark and an exclusive right to use the mark in connection with the goods and services designated in the registration.
  • You have the ability to bring an action against a third party for infringement.
  • You can use the UK registration as a basis to register an international trademark (also called international extension).
  • The trademark will be listed in the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office’s online database.

A registered trademark is a property right. This means that you can dispose of it as you wish, licence it, franchise it and sell it.

What can I do in case of infringement?

A registered trademark makes it easier to take legal action against the infringing party. Trading Standards Officers or the Police may bring criminal charges against counterfeiters.

A trademark rights holder can lodge an application with HMRC for the detention by Customs, generally for a period of ten working days, of any goods that are detected at the UK external border and that are suspected of infringing an intellectual property right. Customs can also contact the rights-holder if they discover suspected infringing goods during the course of other checks.

If you are seeking Customs action at the UK or European Union border, we can file an application for you.

How to protect my trademark?

Our tips for protecting your trademarks and our trademark best practices.

Freedom to operate in the United Kingdom

In order to launch a new brand or target new markets, it is important to verify your freedom to operate. BrandToBe® includes a trademark search and registration package for the UK.

BrandToBe® is designed to research and analyse new brand availability. We prepare a full risk assessment, conducted by legal experts.

How does BrandToBe®work?

We conduct availability searches on proprietary databases. We assess a broad range of Intellectual Property rights that might prevent exploitation (trade names, common law marks, domain names, company names, copyright, etc.). We assess the pros and cons of a particular brand name compared to alternates; We propose mitigation solutions if we find obstacles and risks to the registration of your trademark.

Filing your trademark in the UK

If your brand is available for registration or if our lawyers find a suitable mitigation strategy, we will prepare and file your trademark application in the UK at no additional cost (terms apply).

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MAS LEGAL is a law firm located in London, UK. Practice regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority of England and Wales, registration number 468289. Admission to practice in France. Intra Community VAT No GB 144 873491.

MAS LEGAL is part of an independent lawyer network with Offices in Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the USA. MAS LEGAL provides trademark services covering Europe, Canada, USA, China, Japan, and over 76 other countries.

London +44 (0) 20 7084 6307

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23 Austin Friars

London EC2N 2QP, United Kingdom