A trade mark is essentially your brand’s identity: a name, logo, slogan, or design that helps customers recognise where your goods or services come from. Whether it’s a business name, a product logo, or a tagline, trademarks are a crucial part of how a company presents itself and builds trust with customers.
A trade mark can include words, sounds, colours, logos and/or a combination of any of these elements.
There are two types of trade marks in England: registered and unregistered. While both offer protection, registering your trade mark brings significant advantages.
What a registered trade mark does
A registered trade mark gives you the exclusive right to use your brand name or logo for the goods or services it’s registered under. It also acts as:
- A sign of origin – showing where the product or service comes from;
- An indicator of quality – people associate your mark with what you offer;
- A valuable asset – trademarks often become major parts of a company’s brand value; and
- A commercial tool – they can be licensed or sold like other forms of property.
Key benefits of registration
- Long-Term Protection – Once registered, a trade mark only needs to be renewed every 10 years and can last indefinitely, as long as the mark is still in use and still distinguishes your products or services.
- Stronger Legal Position – It’s easier and quicker to enforce rights against an infringer with a registered mark. You don’t need to prove your reputation or history of use, which is often required in passing-off cases involving unregistered marks.
- Pre-Launch Protection – You can register a trade mark before you even start using it which is great for securing your brand before a product or business launch.
- Public Record – All registered trade marks are searchable in a public database on the UK’s Intellectual Property Office’s (IPO) website. This not only helps you protect your own brand, but also lets you check if a name or logo you plan to use is already taken.
- Inexpensive – to register a trade mark at the IPO costs as little as £170 depending on how many classes you wish to register in.
It doesn’t take long to register your trade mark, all going well, a trade mark can be registered in a minimum of 3 months.
What about unregistered trade marks?
You can still protect a brand name or logo without registering it, but you’ll need to rely on a legal claim known as passing off. This is harder to prove and usually requires you to show that:
- You’ve built up a reputation in the mark;
- Someone else misrepresented their goods/services as yours; and
- You suffered damage as a result.
Unregistered rights offer some protection, but it’s riskier and can be more expensive to enforce.
Infringement & remedies
If someone uses your registered trade mark without permission, you can take legal action.
Remedies may include:
- Injunctions to stop the use immediately;
- Damages to compensate for your losses;
- Orders to destroy or hand over infringing products; and
- In some serious cases, criminal sanctions, particularly if there’s deliberate counterfeiting.
It’s also possible to take action against groundless threats where someone falsely claims you’ve infringed their trade mark rights.
Why it matters
Your name and logo are often your most valuable assets. Businesses invest heavily in branding and having the right legal protection in place is essential. Registering your trade mark gives you peace of mind, stronger legal rights, and a clear way to defend your brand if it’s ever challenged.
Case study: SkyKick v Sky
A long-awaited Supreme Court decision in 2024 where it was decided that trade mark registrations can be cancelled if they’re made in bad faith, for example when there’s no real plan to use the mark for certain products or services.
Read ten full case summary here – SkyKick UK Ltd and another (Appellants) v Sky Ltd and others (Respondents)
Sky’s trade marks, covering TV, internet, and telecom services, were partly invalidated, but infringement was found in SkyKick’s cloud services. The case highlights the importance of being honest and specific when applying for trade marks, and emphasises the need for clear understanding of the several classes trade marks can be registered under.
What Moore Barlow can do for you?
Moore Barlow’s Commercial and Technology and Dispute Resolution teams offer a variety of services in relation to trade marks, including assisting with UK and international trade mark applications, registration and management, drafting licencing agreements, and defending your trade mark against infringement.
