The process of registering your company through CIPC would have helped in terms of business name searches, but you will need to consider registering your trading name, key brand or product names and any logos as trade marks.

Consider registering your main trading name and key product and brand names or logos as trade marks in jurisdictions where you will be marketing or have the most business activities and dealings. This is to help to protect them from being misappropriated by third parties.

Merely having registered a company name provides little protection for the name. There are different classes of trade marks, so you also need to decide for what goods and services to register your mark.

While common law rights can be acquired through use of a trade mark, the advantages of registration are significant:

• Registration provides an easy remedy (the action for infringement) whereby third parties may be restrained from using the same or closely similar marks.
• Registration acts as a deterrent to potential infringers.
• The trade mark owner, by being in a position to offer the statutory protection of a registration, is more likely to attract licensees.
• Registration allows a trade mark owner or licensee to use the words ‘Registered Trade Mark’ or an abbreviation thereof or the international recognised symbol ® in conjunction with the trade mark.
• Registration affords a prima facie (but not an absolute) right to use the trade mark concerned.

We recommend you seek legal assistance in registering trade marks to make sure you get the right protection to suit your business.

If you need help with Trade Mark registration or domain names, send an e-mail to entrepreneur@adamsadams.com

South Africa’s leading intellectual Property Law Firm, Adams & Adams, has for a second year in a row, joined as a legal; and IP partner of the upcoming SA Innovation Summit in Cape Town, to be held from 12 – 14 September 2018. Adams & Adams, will be on hand to provide advice and assistance with regard to patents, trade marks, designs, copyright and trade secrets, non-disclosure documents (NDAs), Licensing and IP commercialization.