Securing the right to use and protect your trademark through federal registration is essential to the success of your business. Welsh IP Law represents clients in all aspects of this process, including trademark clearance, trademark procurement, portfolio management, and trademark enforcement. This article reviews the benefits of trademark registration.
Trademark Registration Provides The Following Benefits:
- A US trademark registration gives the owner the rightto use the registered trademark symbol ® with the mark.
- Registration prevents junior users from registering the same or similar marks for the same type of goods or services.
- Registration serves as the basis for an international trademark application.
- Registration grants a statutory presumption that (a) the mark is valid, (b) the registrant is the owner of the mark, and (c) the registrant has the exclusive right to use the registered mark.
- Registration is proof that the mark has acquired secondary meaning i.e., is distinctive.
- Registration serves as constructive notice of a claim of ownership, eliminating any justification or defense of good faith adoption and use made by a third party after the registration date.
- Registration provides nationwide priority based on the filing date.
- The registration becomes incontestable after five years, creating conclusive evidence of the registrant’s exclusive right to use the mark.
- Registration allows the owner to enforce its trademark against infringers using take-down mechanisms available on e-commerce and social sites such as Amazon and Instagram.
- Registration provides the right to file a trademark infringement lawsuit in federal court and to seek monetary remedies, including infringer’s profits, damages, costs, and, in some cases, treble damages and attorneys’ fees.
