How Brexit will affect UK trademarks’ use in the EU
By Paris Hadjipanayis , Lawyer The EU Trademark Regulation grants no express benefit to any trademark registered outside the European Union. Effectively, in the post Brexit era, UK national trademarks shall no longer enjoy protection from third-party counterfeiting, passing-off, unauthorized use, and distribution as well as licensing vis a vis exploitation by similarly confusing goods, services and intra-trades within the Union. This is partly because the European Union Intellectual Property Office [EUIPO] holds a database (art.112) via its online platform ( eSearch plus ) with all filed and registered EU marks for effectuating its checks and controls on a preliminary stage to either grant registration of a mark for the corresponding class of goods and services (as per the Nice Classification) or file an objection and/or reject the application. What is the tort of passing-off and why registration of a Trademark through EUIPO will become essential to UK holders who deal in