Module 3

Trade marks: what a mark does, distinctiveness, registration, likelihood of confusion, reputation, infringement, genericide and domain names

A trade mark is a promise: this product comes from the same source as the last one you liked. The law protects the promise, not the word. A trade mark right lets the owner stop others from using a sign so close to its own that customers may be misled about who is behind the goods. It is different from copyright and patent, because it can last forever, it depends on **use in trade**, and it is always tied to particular goods or services. This module sets out what can be a mark, how strong a mark is, how rights arise, how a court decides whether two signs are too close, how well-known marks are given wider protection, and how marks are lost.

General education on intellectual property law, using invented businesses, people and figures. It states common principles in simplified form and does not describe any one country’s law, which differs and changes; rules on registration, ownership, infringement and remedies are strict and local. It is not legal advice. Consult a qualified lawyer in the place that matters.