business name rights against a trademark

T

tom16769

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i am a sole trader who registered under the buisness names act in april
4 days after another person applied for a trademark under the same name which has now been approved i have 3 months to object to this what rights do i have as i was trading first and what would be the outcome if i cant stop this trademark
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

The registration of business names act does not protect the name in any way against duplication. It is merely a requirement, if one is trading under a name other than their own given name, to register a business name. eg. Joe Bloggs trading as Joe Bloggs is ok, but Joe Bloggs trading as Joe Bloggs Plumber must register Joe Bloggs Plumber under the act as a business name. It doesn't stop another Joe Bloggs from registering the same name. If one wanted protection of the name then TM registration might have been the way to go first day. A lot of people have mis read the legislation in regard to burinss names, you are not alone there.

As far as objecting to the TM perhaps some other posters might have experience on possible grounds for objections.
AS to the outcome if you can't stop it, then are the businesses operating in such a similar field and in such a close proximity that customers might be mislead as to which they might be dealing with?
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

Regarding business name registration, what is the point in registering if it doesn't give some level of protection. Does it mean I can register a business name of "vodafone" or "guinness" and yet not infringe a trademark?
Also if a certain name is internationally trademarked, is the CRO breaching the trademark by allowing the name to be registered?
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

Perhaps I wasn't clear in my earlier post. The Registration of Business Names Act 1963 is not and never was intended as a vehicle to PROTECT a name. It is simply a law which states that if you trade under a name other than your own, you must register that name. So you have Joe Bloggs Trading as Joe Bloggs Plumber. You could have ten Joe Bloggs Plumbers and they would all be allowed register their trading name.

The CRO has no part to play in the protection of trademarks, however they may refuse to register a business name if it's deemed inappropriate.
For full details check out [broken link removed]
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

An RBN is so that John Doe can trade as something other than their naturally given name. It has nothing to do with intellectual property rights.
Do a search on CRO for Mace or Spar and you will see what I mean
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

8till8 said:
Also if a certain name is internationally trademarked, is the CRO breaching the trademark by allowing the name to be registered?
Click to expand...
The onus is on the person submitting the application to check with regard to breach of trademark etc.
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

Which of the two people involved is trying to pull a fast one ?
 
Re: buisness name rights against a trademark

Graham_07 said:
The registration of business names act does not protect the name in any way against duplication. It is merely a requirement, if one is trading under a name other than their own given name, to register a business name. eg. Joe Bloggs trading as Joe Bloggs is ok, but Joe Bloggs trading as Joe Bloggs Plumber must register Joe Bloggs Plumber under the act as a business name. It doesn't stop another Joe Bloggs from registering the same name. If one wanted protection of the name then TM registration might have been the way to go first day. A lot of people have mis read the legislation in regard to burinss names, you are not alone there.

As far as objecting to the TM perhaps some other posters might have experience on possible grounds for objections.
AS to the outcome if you can't stop it, then are the businesses operating in such a similar field and in such a close proximity that customers might be mislead as to which they might be dealing with?
Click to expand...

Basically right.

If you can show previous rights to the TM then you may have a case (appeal to the Controller of Patents and Trademarks in Kilkenny). To be honest I think you will struggle to prove any entitlement unless you can show that the other person intended to pretend to be your business. To be successful you would need to show that you had established the mark in the market.

Are you trading in the same business area (ie doing the same thing)? If not then you should apply for a trademark under your business area. If you are trading in the same business area I would cut my losses.

As Graham said, the RBN gives not intellectual property rights. The trademark is where the intellectual property lies.
 
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