What Brexit Means for Trademarks

In 2016 the Britain voted to leave the European Union after 40 years of close political and legal ties. Dubbed ‘Brexit’, this process is having far reaching consequences in many areas, including trademarking.

Currently, UK and EU trademark legislation has been closely integrated, with both UK registration and EU registration recognized interchangeably. However, as Brexit approaches, the idea of legislative divergence between the UK and the EU grows, and this could have a significant impact on both UK and EU companies who hold trademarks that apply in both regions.

Because even at this late stage discussions are still ongoing, the situation is still unfolding, however what we know so far sounds promising. It has been suggested that the UK will grant all holders of EU trademarks a UK trademark of equivalent nature, registered at the UK Intellectual Property Office, UKIPO, free of charge.

This means that the UK based trademark would be an entirely separate registration, and it could be challenged or licensed independently of any EU trademark. For any EU license holder, it is important to take steps now to prepare for this situation. It is likely that the UKIPO will be overwhelmed with the workload at least in the short term, making it prudent to spot and deal with problems early.

We hope that as negotiations move forward, more clarity on trademark arrangements will be forthcoming.