WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A TRADENAME AND A TRADEMARK?
A tradename is a business name that you operate under, different from your personal name or your company’s name. Under the legal doctrine of passing off, if someone uses your tradename or something similar to it in the area in which you operate, you can commence legal action i.e. a lawsuit against them but you can only do that in the local market area where you operate.
A trademark on the other hand is nationwide and once registered your trademark is protected across all of Canada or the US. This not only includes your business name but also would include the slogans, advertising jingles, graphic designs, logos etc., anything you used to help distinguish you from your competition.
Thus registering your trademark is far more important than has far more remedies available to it as compared to a simple tradename.
You can walk into any registry shop and walk out 5 minutes later having registered your tradename. When you do that you do not require any exclusive rights or ownership of the tradename. 10 people could walk into registry shops on the same day having registered same tradename. That’s not possible with a trademark for the same goods or services that we include in your initial filings.
If you’re interested, give us a call or email us
Stemp & Company
1670, 734 – 7th Avenue SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P 3P8
Bill Stemp
403-777-1125 bill@stemp.com
Kari Ivey
403-777-1123 kari@stemp.com
Tasha Traynor
403-777 1129 tasha@stemp.com
