Trademark defense battle: What to do if you encounter trademark squatting and infringement! Lawyer’s role: Protect brands from infringement and safeguard rights and interests!

The dilemma of trademark squatting

(1) The phenomenon of squatting is common

In today's society, trademark squatting is relatively common. For example, the names of Olympic champions have been registered. After Olympic athletes such as Quan Hongchan and Yang Qian achieved outstanding results, their names were registered as trademarks by many parties. In addition, Internet hot words often become the target of squatting. For example, after "Ding Zhen" became popular, there were 122 trademark registration applications involving "Ding Zhen" within a month; "Mouse Tail Juice" has been registered since November 11, 2020. From October 23 to December 13, 2020, there have been 210 trademark registration applications; "Ganfanren" has had 142 trademark registration applications. There is also a hot Internet phrase "the first cup of milk tea in autumn" that has been registered as a company in many places. Most of the companies registered in Xinyang City, Zhengzhou City, Baise City and other three places are small and micro enterprises, and their business scope falls into the category of catering services.

(2) Adverse consequences caused by

When a trademark is preemptively registered, it will have many negative impacts on companies or individuals. First of all, it will destroy the normal order of market competition. Malicious registration of trademarks is essentially the misappropriation of other people's goodwill or reputation, or the illegal occupation of public resources, which will inevitably lead to chaos in the order of market competition. Secondly, in order to deal with malicious registration, companies may need to invest a lot of manpower and material resources to resolve lawsuits, or register a large number of "defensive trademarks" in advance, resulting in an unnecessary waste of economic resources. At the same time, the proliferation of malicious trademark registrations will also affect the cultivation of trademark awareness by legitimate operators, hindering or even stifling the formation of well-known brands. Furthermore, trademark preemptive registration will consume a lot of trademark review and judicial resources and endanger the order of trademark registration and use. Finally, trademark squatting may also seriously harm the international image of my country’s intellectual property rights protection, causing other countries to accuse my country of malicious trademark squatting. For example, the Japanese Industrial Economy has made public remarks accusing my country of rampant malicious trademark squatting, and the Italian Foreign Trade Commission has made a special trip to China to crack down on counterfeit Italian brands.

How to deal with trademark squatting

(1) For trademarks that have not been successfully registered

When a preemptively registered trademark is still in the preliminary approval stage, the business owner can file an objection with the Trademark Office within 3 months from the date of announcement. This measure requires the provision of sufficient, true and effective materials and evidence, such as evidence to prove that the trademark has been used before, evidence that the trademark has a certain influence, etc. Trademark opposition refers to the basic approval of a trademark, and a clear suggestion for boycott and request for revocation in accordance with the Trademark Law. Business owners should prepare evidence through a professional trademark agency. After review, the Trademark Office will decide whether the trademark can be registered based on the actual situation.

(2) For successfully registered trademarks

If the registered trademark has been approved for registration, you can request the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce to declare the registered trademark invalid in accordance with the provisions of Article 45 of the Trademark Law, but there is a 5-year time limit (well-known trademarks are not subject to this time limit). The invalidation of registered trademarks refers to a system in which the trademark authority declares invalid registered trademarks in accordance with legal procedures for those registered trademarks that violate the provisions of the Trademark Law and should not be registered. If you are not satisfied with the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board's ruling, you may file an administrative lawsuit with the People's Court.

(3) Trademark cancellation

If the registered trademark is not actually used, any company or individual can apply to the Trademark Office to cancel the trademark. The purpose of establishing the trademark cancellation system is to urge trademark rights holders to make real, legal, standardized, open and effective commercial use of registered trademarks on approved goods or services, so as to give full play to the identification role of trademarks and activate trademark resources. When an enterprise files an application for cancellation of a registered trademark, it needs to explain the non-use of the registered trademark and provide preliminary evidence. In practice, the cancellation applicant only needs to provide preliminary online search evidence and does not need to conduct market research. The burden of proof in the withdrawal procedure lies with the party being withdrawn, that is, the trademark registrant.

(4) Spend money to buy

Business owners can negotiate with the trademark holder, spend money to purchase the registered trademark, and go to the Trademark Office together to handle the trademark transfer. Spending a sum of money to save the time of a lawsuit is also a worry-free way.

How to deal with trademark infringement

(1) Rights protection through administrative methods

When trademark infringement is established, the industrial and commercial administration departments can play an important role. The industrial and commercial administration department can order the infringer to immediately stop the infringement, such as requiring it to stop producing or selling infringing goods. At the same time, infringing goods and tools specifically used to manufacture infringing goods and counterfeit registered trademarks can be confiscated and destroyed. In addition, fines can also be imposed based on the facts of the infringer's violation and the severity of the circumstances. If the illegal business volume is more than 50,000 yuan, a fine of not more than five times the illegal business volume may be imposed; if there is no illegal business volume or the illegal business volume is less than 50,000 yuan, a fine of not more than 250,000 yuan may be imposed. The industrial and commercial administration authorities may impose a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan on the person directly responsible for infringing the exclusive rights of a registered trademark according to the circumstances.

(2) Rights protection through judicial channels

The trademark registrant or interested party may file a lawsuit in the People's Court when the trademark is infringed. Determining the jurisdictional court is the key. Civil lawsuits filed due to infringement of the exclusive right to use a registered trademark are generally under the jurisdiction of the people's court of the place where the infringement is committed, where the infringing trademark is stored or seized, and where the defendant is domiciled. The parties concerned should prepare sufficient, true and effective materials and evidence, and safeguard their rights and interests in accordance with legal provisions. If you are dissatisfied with the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board's ruling, you can file an administrative lawsuit with the People's Court.

Taipei Trademark Firms and Lawyers Recommended

(1) Taipei Trademark Office

There are many well-known trademark firms in Taipei, among which Fidelity Law Firm is a leader in this field. Fidelity Law Firm not only helps clients successfully obtain the rights to patents and trademarks, but also helps clients with marketing and sales. We provide multiple services at one cost, allowing clients to obtain the greatest commercial value with the least expense. The office is located on the 17th floor of No. 180, Section 2, Dunhua South Road, Da'an District, Taipei City. It often releases the latest news, such as the Executive Yuan passing the latest draft of the Patent Law and the Trademark Law, the Smart Bureau's digital services have been upgraded, and the patent and trademark electronic certificate services will be available from 112 To start, the European "Unit Patent" Unified Patent Court will begin operations on June 1, 2023, etc. In addition, the firm also provides a wealth of patent and trademark knowledge and information, covering new patent technology reports, relevant time limits for the PCT international application stage, trademark application precautions, vaccine knowledge, key points in the new patent and trademark laws, etc. Fidelity Law Firm has been recognized by customers in the intellectual property rights service industry of business services. It adheres to the business philosophy of "guaranteing first-class quality and maintaining first-class credibility" to provide customers with high-quality services.

(2) Taipei trademark lawyer recommendation

Fidelity Law Firm, led by lawyer Li Yusheng, specializes in trademark squatting disputes and has excellent performance in trademark law. It has accumulated more than 20 years of rich experience in handling trademark rights cases and related trademark disputes, and has assisted many A company secures its trademark rights.

Further reading:What should I do if a trademark infringement occurs? Legal measures that can be taken.

Further reading:What are business secrets? Three major legal requirements for business secrets.

Further reading:What should I do if an employee takes away company confidential information? Relevant provisions of the Trade Secrets Act.

Fuda Law Firm, composed of a team of lawyers, patent attorneys and patent engineering teams who specialize in patents and trademarks. They specialize in the field of intellectual property law. The team lawyer members all have rich practical experience and long-term experience in serving listed companies and small and medium-sized enterprises, and can provide assistance. . If you have any needs, you can contact our firm at any time.

Fuda Law Firm
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