Initial Consultation
for Trademark Protection
from Initial Consultation
to Trademark Registration
Handle
the Process
Protect your Product Now!
Protecting one’s own product as a trademark should be a top priority for every company. Those who have omitted this step require urgent action.
A product protected as a trademark prevents competitors from appearing with the same or a confusingly similar product name, thereby causing market confusion. Trademark protection thus ensures that your product remains unique, distinctive, and easily discoverable in the future.
Peter HarlanderHarlander & Partner Rechtsanwälte „Dieser Wettbewerbsvorteil eines markenrechtlich geschützten Produkts ist nicht nur für große Brands und Labels, sondern auch für kleine Unternehmen ganz leicht leistbar.“
Trademark Protection for Products
Harlander & Partner supports you on your path to trademark protection for your product – at attractive flat rates.
- Optimization of Your Trademark Strategy
- Selection of the Ideal Trademark Type(s)
- Selection of the Appropriate Nice Class(es)
- Determination of the Geographical Scope of Protection
- Examination for Obstacles to Registration
- Trademark Similarity Search
- Execution of Trademark Registration
- Trademark Monitoring
- Resolution of Trademark Disputes
Curious for more details? Simply read on below or arrange a free initial consultation directly.
Term of Trademark Protection
Trademark protection is valid for 10 years and can be renewed indefinitely. Initial costs are in the lowest four-figure range. Calculated annually, for example, EU-wide protection of a trademark, including legal fees and registration fees, costs only a few hundred euros per year.
Considering the value of “EU-wide protection of one’s own product designation,” one must conclude that there is little for companies that is comparably affordable and sensible at the same time.
Trademark Law Consultation
In the first step, fundamental preliminary questions are reviewed. In which classes should the trademark be protected? Is your trademark protectable at all? If so, in what form? As part of the examination of the registration requirements, it is checked, for example, whether there is a need for availability and whether the trademark possesses distinctiveness.
In the next step, the type of trademark is determined together with you. For example, a word mark, a figurative mark, or a word-figurative mark may be considered. Each variant has advantages, but also disadvantages. Furthermore, the scope of protection of the trademark is defined, i.e., in which classes and in which countries the trademark is to be protected.
For the selection of the Nice Classes to be protected, we analyze the current scope of your company’s activities, but also consider with you where the company might develop in the future.
Finally, the geographical scope of protection is determined. Most frequently, trademarks are registered in the EU, Austria, and Germany. However, international trademark applications in Switzerland or the USA are also not uncommon.
Trademark Examination
Only when these fundamentals have been clarified is a similarity search and the trademark legal analysis of the results possible. At its core, it involves determining whether the trademark to be registered is confusingly similar to existing trademarks. Regarding the question of when a likelihood of confusion exists, there is extensive and multifaceted case law.
Even as a trademark law expert, one encounters a few tough challenges at this point. Laypersons can only arrive at the correct result by chance. Depending on its outcome, the trademark legal analysis leads either to the approval of registration or to the creation of a risk assessment.
Trademark Registration
Following the trademark similarity search, trademark registration takes place. This consists of handling the registration procedure, i.e., preparing all documents, filing with the competent trademark office, and corresponding with the trademark office.
In the event of third-party oppositions against the trademark application, a separate opposition procedure is initiated, in which the oppositions must be processed and refuted.
Trademark Monitoring
After trademark registration, we are pleased to offer further services such as ongoing monitoring of the trademark for infringements by third parties or ensuring the timely renewal of your trademark before the expiry of the 10-year protection period.
