Hi man, i asked a similar question a couple months ago, check this http://www.revscene.net/forums/filin...ight=trademark for what people said back then.
Basically, in a nutshell, the trademark process is a VERY long one, and ususally takes 1 to 1.5 years before the whole process is complete. If you were just a business starting out, i'd tell you to at least TRY to complete the process yourself. But seeing how your starting this process because someone else has opened up a business with the same name, i STRONGLY STRONGLY suggest you lawyer up. This is not going to be an easy process, and definitely not something you will be able to do yourself if you are expecting another company to try to appeal your trademark. The most important thing for you to do right now is to make sure that you get your name or brand on as many products and use it as many times as possible. Make sure that that name or logo is easily reconizable by YOUR company (IE if you have a business card, website,company address, associated products, etc etc). You are more likely to win an appeal if your logo/trademark is more recognized for you. My trademark is currently still in process, and I have tried to file it myself. Lawyer fees are around 180-240$ an hour depending on where you look, but it's going to have to be worth it because some of the legal documents your gonna have to go through him. Message me if you have any more questions, i'll try to help as much as i can. Quote:
Originally Posted by Manic!
(Post 7349694)
| Quote:
Originally Posted by mx703
(Post 7349712)
so if you trade mark your name will that business have to change theirs?
| About whether or not the business has to change there name, if you already had your trademark set up, you can take legal action against him (which is still costly to you) to make them stop using that name. But if you have never filed for trademark, and they file at the same time as you, you guys will have a dispute that might end up being settled in court as to who gets to use the trademark. The court is more likely to award the trademark to the person that have been using it more/bigger company that is more recognized, but again you have to pay the lawyer fees just to defend your position.
Don't trust those websites that say "they'll help you file trademarks". There are certified trademark agents on the canada trademark website with agents in vancouver. They all offer free consultation to figure out what your needs are. Have a sit down with one of them and figure out where you want to go from here.
Good luck! | 