4 ms·
Why does everyone want to sue everyone these days?
by rschachte 4y ago
Why does everyone want to sue everyone these days?
- bgm1975 4y agoFree money (or the perception of it anyway).
- UncleEntity 4y agoYou literally have to or you risk losing your trademark. Patents and copyright you can not enforce if you choose not to but trademarks are a different animal.
- alangibson 4y agoRegistering a trademark isn't about suing anyone. It's about keeping others from frivolously suing you. If you are successful but don't register, someone _will_ register it in the same industry and sue you for infringement. They'll also some times hijack your Amazon listings if you are a seller.
- pbhjpbhj 4y agoPrior use is an absolute defence. You might have problems with expansion (geographic, and type of business). This is not legal advice, just my opinion.
- alangibson 4y agoIANAL, but I think that's only true in the USA. Most other places are first to file, not first to use. And even then, that doesn't prevent a frivolous suit in the USA
- pbhjpbhj 4y agoNo, for trademarks it's standard practice to allow prior use to continue (USA, EU, UK, at least). You can have a trade mark for decades, and be protected by passing-off law, then come to register it and find a brand new company has registered that mark, but that doesn't mean you can't continue your own trade with that mark, but can mean you're going to infringe on their registered right if you change (eg enter a new TM class, enter a new geographic region). This prevents established companies from being damaged by opponents registering their marks.