What happens if you use a trademarked name

Understanding how these laws apply to your particular business or situation will often require the expertise of a trademark lawyer who understands you and your business goals.

If you are looking to register your own trademark, Rocket Lawyer trademark specialists are ready to get you through the entire process, from conducting a trademark search to filing the application, all at an affordable price.

This article contains general legal information and does not contain legal advice. Rocket Lawyer is not a law firm or a substitute for an attorney or law firm. The law is complex and changes often. For legal advice, please ask a lawyer. Ask a lawyer Find a lawyer near you Legal dictionary Learning center Need help? Contact us ». Got a trademark question or problem? Get your answer. Lease Confidently. Meet Everyday Law About us Contributors.

Blog posts Blog post archives RSS feed. Patent and Trademark Office. The idea that another company is using "your" name can be deeply frustrating.

As a general rule, trademarks do not infringe one another if the underlying products or services of the two companies do not compete and are not distributed in the same trade channels or locations. One of the primary aims of trademark law is to prevent consumer confusion. It would not serve the public good to allow two bakeries with the same name and logo to exist across the street from one another, since customers would not know which products come from which bakery.

The bakery with delicious muffins might lose business to an identically named bakery with terrible muffins, because of consumer confusion. However, if the two products are not related to one another and not likely to cause any confusion, then trademark law will not prevent the two companies from using the same name. Put differently, if the same name is registered in different trademark classes , this does not give rise to an infringement claim. Here, you run a construction business in Delaware and the "other" Star Services sells telescopes in Alaska.

No consumer is likely to be confused as to which is which. You each sell different products in different markets to different types of customers. Moreover, they sell products, whereas you sell services. Follow us on Twitter.

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Please check any information you find here for accuracy and completeness. The process of naming your business and securing trademark rights can be summarized in three basic points: Choose a name for your business. It should be distinctive, not generic, and should not be close to the name of anyone in a similar business. Search for others using your chosen name or similar ones. You should search the Internet and federal and state trademark databases, at the very least.

You should not use the name if someone in your field or a similar one is using it. In addition, if you add two initials to a surname, it is probable that the commercial impression that will be conveyed by the Mark will be that of a personal name and not a surname.

In the famous case of In re P. Fitzpatrick, Inc 95 U. Fitzpatrick Inc. This is good news for those of us who are looking for a way to use their surname as a trademark.

In summary, if the name is considered primarily a surname then acquired distinctiveness must be proved. If the name is a personal name you may use it a trademark, as long as a namesake does not beat you to the punch, meaning that your proposed personal name would not cause a likelihood of confusion with a similar name already in use for related goods or services.

Lastly, we must mention that Federal Trademark Law affords protection for a celebrity's name even if the celebrity is selling only himself or herself and not goods or merchandise. This bar applies whether or not the celebrity has registered his or her name as a trademark prior to their death.