Should You Use Trademark Symbols?

Although there is no legal requirement in Canada to identify your trademarks with any symbols (e.g., “^TM” for unregistered trademarks, or “®” for registered trademarks), there are a number of useful purposes of doing so. The simplest purposes being that you can alert your customers that you own a particular trademark and deter competitors from copying it.

With a logo that includes design elements other than text, it may already be obvious that it is a trademark even without a “TM” symbol next to it. However, for more word-based or slogan type trademarks, using the “TM” symbol can help to identify words that are used as trademarks when it isn’t as obvious due to the inherent meaning of the words used or if it is surrounded by other text or graphics.

Keep in mind that if the “TM” symbol is used for a particular trademark, that does not mean that it then has to be used in every instance. So consider the benefits of using the TM symbol if you haven’t already, and try to notice how often businesses around you are using the symbol.

Please contact us by email at trademarks@kmblaw.com to learn more or to begin the process of making money with your trademarks.