Canada
Costs to get a trade mark in Canada recently plummeted. We also expect the time taken to registration of a trade mark in Canada for Australian early stage exporters to fall. New laws changed the requirements for registration, and also permit trade mark registration via the same system used to apply for protection in many other countries.
Canada’s new trade mark laws allowed it to join the Madrid Protocol International Registration system. Making a single application covering many countries is far cheaper than an application per country.
This change to trade marks in Canada has been much anticipated, but long delayed.
We expect savings of thousands of dollars per Canadian trade mark application. Most applications will no longer need help from a Canadian attorney. Even for more complex cases, the new laws avoid expensive requirements under the old laws.
For example, making a Declaration of Use of the trade mark in Canada is no longer essential for registration. This avoids paying for years of extra time to start using the trade mark in Canada.
Brazil
Brazil also joins the Madrid Protocol International Registration system, on 2 October 2019. Costs will be significantly reduced. We also expect much faster processing of trade mark applications.
The international registration system allows the examiner in each country only 18 months to object to a trade mark application. This has noticeably improved time frames for many countries.
To discuss trade mark protection in Canada, Brazil or elsewhere please contact us at any time. Our expert trade mark attorneys have many years experience assisting clients to protect their trade mark rights internationally.
