Bi-Weekly Newsletter


June 16, 2017

Important Amendments to Canada's Trademark Law

Canada's finally moving towards aligning its trademark law with the rest of the world.

On June 19, 2017, Canadian government published proposed regulations that—when adopted—will result in implementation of Canada's commitment to join Madrid Protocol and introduce some significant amendments in the way trademarks are registered in Canada.

I recorded a video where I go over 6 important changes and one important non-change.

Here's a short table of contents, but you should really watch the video.

1. Canada is joining the Madrid system that will allow Canadians file international trademark applications. It would also allow non-Canadians register their trademarks in Canada more easily.

2. There will no longer be a requirement to show (or declare) use to register your trademarks in Canada.

3. It will be easier to trademark shapes of your products.

4. Canada is officially adopting the Nice Classification of Goods and Services. The practical result of that for business owners is that the government fees are going up. Significantly.

5. The registration term is going down from 15 years to 10 years. 

6. You will be able to divide a pending trademark application to get a registration certificate for one part of the application and continue fighting with the Trademarks Office over the rest of your application.

7. Official marks are not gone. They will continue creating chaos and disarray—for no good reason.

Like I said, this is just a brief summary.

Just watch the video.