To ensure the success of your trademark registration, you need to have a fresh expression. But attention: the novelty here is known as relative, as it is analyzed within the segment of your product or service. An example is the Bandeirantes brand. We have this expression registered in the name of several companies that are not connected, and they all have rights over the brand, precisely because it is new to that specific segment: bicycle is different from a television channel, right?

In addition to the novelty mentioned above, your trademark must meet other requirements required by law to be effectively registered by the INPI – National Institute of Industrial Property. The main requirement, and the most basic, is to know if there is no longer an identical or very close brand for the same product or service. For this, you must carry out a search in the INPI database, available on the institute’s website. However, it is highly recommended that a qualified professional assist in this process, as there are several legal aspects that influence the result or understanding of what is found on the site.

Another question among the doubts about trademark registration that is very common is whether trademark registration can be done both in the name of the individual and the legal entity. The fundamental thing is that you prove that your professional activity is linked to the use you intend to make of the brand. If you, for example, are a physical education professional and want to register a brand for the gym, there will be no problems. As soon as you open the company, the recommendation is that you make the transfer to the legal entity.

Do not confuse company registration with trademark registration. The fact that you have formalized your business, through the registration of the company at the Board of Trade or even at a notary’s office, does not mean that the brand you use is yours, even if this expression is also part of the company’s name.

It is very common for businessmen or entrepreneurs to choose an expression that is linked to their product or service as the brand that will represent their entire business, their entire effort. But a lot of care is needed. Merely descriptive marks cannot be registered. This is the case, for example, of the expressions “Shirt” for clothes or “Car” for automobiles, among many others.

It’s no use changing the spelling of your brand to try to distance it from another existing one. Using “K” instead of “C”, “X” instead of “CH” or “S”, “Y” instead of “I”, or doubling consonants doesn’t change anything. If the sound is the same and the word has the same meaning, the record will not be viable. Therefore, the spelling of the brand does not matter.

If you met a brand on one of your trips abroad and thought about registering it here, be very careful. Even if the foreign company’s trademark has not been registered in Brazil, it will have priority in the registration process. The best thing is that you try a local license, a representation or invest in a new, own brand. Oh, and it’s no use making a version in another language for an already known brand. The registration will be rejected.

There are special rules for so-called well-known brands and well-known brands, expressions used by legislation (and which may be the subject of a special article), but one thing you should keep in mind: do not try to use this expression to identify your service with the intention to take advantage of the success of others, even if it is very far from the one identified by the “famous” brand. Registration will likely be denied and you still risk being sued.

The flag of Brazil, your state or other countries cannot be registered. If the expression you chose is associated with these elements, registration will be denied. The same applies to coats of arms, weapons, medals, emblems or badges and official monuments.

The expression you have chosen cannot lead to a false idea, whether of the origin, origin, nature, quality or usefulness of the product or service. Therefore, if your brand has something like “Wine from France”, “Pure Spanish Olive Oil” and you are not French or Spanish, nor the product is produced there, the registration will be denied. A classic case is the expression “Virgin Again”.

No one is required by law to register your trademark. However, if you do not seek registration, you can live with other companies that use similar or even identical brands. You may also be required to stop using the trademark.

Yup. The Brazilian system is attributive of rights and grants the right of exclusive use to those who first apply for registration with the federal agency INPI. If another company seeks registration first, there is a serious risk that you will be notified to refrain from using the trademark, and this leads to significant losses, which often lead companies to bankruptcy.

Yes, unregistered trademarks do not provide security for the consumer, for their shareholders or quotaholders, as well as for investors, as at any time you may come across another identical trademark that may divert your clientele, cause false association, cause depreciation and dilution of the brand.

Yes, the registered trademark is an intangible asset and can be evaluated and commercialized. The purchase and sale contract must be registered with the INPI for it to take effect.

Given the plurality of possible scenarios, the best thing to do is to consult a lawyer specializing in intellectual property to outline the most appropriate legal strategy for the specific case.

In order to obtain ownership and the right of exclusive use throughout the national territory, even if you already use the brand, it is necessary to request registration with the INPI, which is recommended to be done through a specialized lawyer.

The intellectual property specialist monitors all INPI dispatches and publications, adapting their registration to the new Federal guidelines, monitoring new third-party registration requests and verifying possible conflicts, so that the client can actively act in the face of possible infringements of its registration. In addition, all legal terms for renewal and use are strictly followed to avoid damage to the holder.

The processing time is approximately 10 months. If there is opposition or intercurrences, it may take more than a year.