Will EU Trademark Law apply in the UK after Brexit?
What It Means for EU Trademarks?
EU trademarks registered by December 31, 2020, automatically acquired their UK registration. Registrations after that date require direct application of their UK trademark registration. However, a grace period ending in September 2021 allows you to claim the filing priority date of your EU trademark application.
For example, you filed your EU trademark application on August 31, 2020, and it received approval after December 31, 2020. You now need to file directly with the UK for your trademark. Then you realize in February 2021, you have no trademark protection in the US or the UK, and a competitor is applying to register your brand as their trademark.
You file your UK trademark in April 2021 and claim priority for this application back to your EU trademark application date. This conventional priority means your UK trademark registration date is August 31, 2020, the same as your EU filing. Your competitor is now in second place.
What about Renewal
?
If your EU trademark receives approval by December 31, 2020, your renewal date for the UK trademark will be the same as the European Union mark. But you will renew your UK trademark according to the UK rules rather than EU regulations.
What if I Already Have an EU Trademark?
Existing European Union trademarks will automatically receive their UK trademark registration by renewing their EU and UK registrations. Pending EU trademark applications receiving approval by December 31, 2020, follow the same regulations I describe above, with the same grace period and deadline.
Summary
Brexit, whatever you think of it, is here. While the transition period is behind us, and we have months of data to digest regarding its impact, EU and UK trademarks continue protecting brands.
Registering trademarks and protecting brands is what we do at Trademark Factory®. The complexities of Brexit are similar to those of the trademark application process.
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