Trademarks and Brand Management

Hoffer Adler has considerable experience in assisting clients with all aspects of trademarks and brand management.

We understand that a brand goes beyond a trademark – it’s your business’ reputation and therefore requires the utmost management and care. Our trademark lawyers are also qualified as trademark agents, meaning we have specific expertise in representing clients in the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO), coupled with the knowledge and ability to advise on legal issues. With this background, we can advise our clients on the steps that they can take to protect their brands before issues arise to reduce legal and other costs.

Our services include:

• Advising clients on choosing strong trademarks and best practices for maintaining the validity of existing marks, helping to avoid a loss of trademark rights
• Assisting clients with name generation projects and trademark selection, including screening searches to narrow lists of potential marks
• Reviewing trademark clearance searches and providing an assessment of the risks involved with using a trademark in Canada, as well as determining the chances of being able to successfully register a trademark in Canada
• Assisting clients with all aspects of the Canadian trademark application and prosecution process, including preparing and filing applications in accordance with the requirements of the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, and responding to objections
• Managing Canadian and multi-jurisdictional trademark portfolios using an industry-leading third-party software docketing and management platform
• Assisting with foreign trademark filings, including through the Madrid Protocol
• Responding to refusals against applications designating Canada filed under the Madrid Protocol
• Engaging in trademark audits to assist clients with adhering to best practices regarding trademark use
• Monitoring trademarks of other parties to enable timely action (through trademark opposition and/or trademark litigation proceedings) when another party files or uses a confusingly similar trademark

We also assist with the following:

• Trademarks and business transactions, including licensing, assignments, sales and distribution agreements
• Trademarks issues on the Internet
• Trademark oppositions and trademark litigation