Why should I register a trade mark?

The fundamental purpose and function of a trade mark is to provide the consumer with the means to distinguish the goods and services of one undertaking from those of another thereby avoiding any confusion. It allows consumers to recognise your products or services as yours alone and thus avoid confusing them with the products or services of a competitor. A trade mark may also reflect certain attributes and qualities which consumers can identify with certain products and services and so be given a sense of assurance that their requirements of quality and/ or taste will be met.

Benefits of registering a trade mark 

Registration of a trade mark grants a statutory monopoly right to use the trade mark for a period of 10 years (see below). This means that you as the registered proprietor can use the registration to prevent others from using the same or a similar mark on identical or similar goods or services.

Duration of a registered trade mark  

The duration of a registered trade mark is ten (10) years from the date of registration and it can be renewed for a further 10 year period prior to expiry of the term and can keep being renewed every 10 years. Therefore if you manage and administer your trade mark correctly the duration of your registered trade mark can last forever. . However, if you fail to renew your trade mark on time, it will be removed from the register.

Conclusion 

It can be argued that trade marks play a fundamental role in protecting business names, product names and the names attributed to services offered by a business. In the event that another business copies a trading name, the original business is left only with rights granted by the law of passing off, which generally requires substantial evidence of trading activity and extensive marketing, in order to overcome the threshold requirements for goodwill and reputation, which in essence is what the tort of passing off protects. This is often a time consuming and expensive exercise. A registered trade mark of course alleviates the need to do this and sets out your rights from and including the date of application.