Opposition proceedings are written proceedings brought before the trademark authority, which will then actually assess whether the trademarks may lead to a likelihood of confusion among the public. Both parties are given the opportunity to argue their case in writing in these proceedings. After the arguments have been exchanged, the trademark authority will decide whether there is a likelihood of confusion. If so, the trademark application against which the opposition proceedings were instituted will not be registered. We can conduct these opposition proceedings on behalf of our clients.
Trademark infringement
You have established that someone is infringing your trademark and you want to take action. You can prepare a strategy in dialogue with NLO Shieldmark. Is it sufficient to write a demand letter or can opposition proceedings be instituted? If the trademark has already been registered, it may sometimes be possible to start a deregistration procedure, in which the trademark authority is asked to strike a trademark registration if the trademark constitutes infringement. In some cases, legal proceedings may have to be instituted straight away. We can give you guidance and advice in cases of infringement and work with you to define the best strategy to stop the infringement.
Types of trademark infringement
You have several options for taking action against trademark infringement. Your options obviously depend on the type of infringement committed against your trademark. As a trademark proprietor, you may oppose:
- the use of similar or identical trademarks for similar and, in some cases, other types of goods and/or services, to the extent that confusion may arise among the public;
- the subsequent registration of similar or identical trademarks for similar goods and/or services;
- the subsequent use of trade names, to the extent that confusion may arise among the public;
- the subsequent use or the registration of domain names if this may lead to confusion in relation to your trademark.
Any questions?
Please do not hesitate to contact one of the NLO Shieldmark legal experts if you are interested in customised advice on trademark infringement.
