Many people think that they can go to one of the registry shops to have a business name checked out and then when they find out the name appears to be available they filed a notice of use of tradename. Many people think this protects the name. It absolutely does not. The only thing that is being checked by the registry shop is whether someone in Alberta is operating the business under the same name. It is not the same as a trademark search which is federal.
Many people are confused because they adopted a business name and then they get a cease-and-desist letter from the law firm who is writing to them on behalf of the owner of a registered trademark demanding that they stop using the registry trademark as part of their business name.
This can all be avoided by having us do a federal trademark search for you to see if the name is available federally.
All of the laws regarding trademarks are federal, not provincial. There is no such thing as a provincial trademark
When you are securing domain names, it is imperative that we do trademark searches for you to make sure you’re not inadvertently copying someone else’s trademark as your domain name. If you do this you are going to be receiving a cease- and-desist letter from a law firm demanding that you take down the domain or cancel your website containing the name.
Stemp & Company
