Trademark Enforcement Attorney

Trademark enforcement is the legal process of protecting your trademark rights against unauthorized use. Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)) applies whether or not a mark is registered; a Principal Register registration adds the registered-mark infringement claim (15 U.S.C. § 1114) and prima facie evidence of validity, ownership, and the exclusive right to use the mark for the registered goods or services (15 U.S.C. § 1057(b)). Enforcement is what you do with those rights. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1127, a mark is deemed abandoned when any course of conduct of the owner, including acts of omission as well as commission, causes it to become the generic name for the goods or services or otherwise to lose its significance as a mark. Licensing carries a separate risk: where a licensor fails to exercise adequate quality control over a licensee, a court may find that the owner has abandoned the mark (FreecycleSunnyvale v. The Freecycle Network (9th Cir. 2010)).

A professional monitoring program watches for new trademark applications at the USPTO (CIPO watch is available as an add-on) that are confusingly similar to your registered marks, domain registrations using your brand name, and social media accounts and marketplace listings using your mark. Monitoring is run on a scheduled basis. When a conflict is flagged, the enforcement attorney determines whether a response is required.

Send a cease-and-desist when you have identified a clear infringing use, confirmed that your trademark rights cover the territory and goods or services involved, and documented the infringement with timestamps and screenshots. The sequence matters: a cease-and-desist sent without a solid legal foundation can expose you to a declaratory judgment action. The right timing is after a legal assessment, not immediately after you discover the use.

Non-compliance opens the path to escalation. If the infringer has a published pending application, an opposition at the TTAB may be available. If they have a registered mark, a petition to cancel may be available on the grounds and within the time limits of 15 U.S.C. § 1064. A federal lawsuit under the Lanham Act seeking injunctive relief and damages is a separate route, whether or not a TTAB proceeding is available.

Naked licensing occurs when a trademark owner licenses the mark to another party without maintaining adequate quality control over how the mark is used. In FreecycleSunnyvale v. The Freecycle Network (9th Cir. 2010), the court affirmed a grant of partial summary judgment holding that The Freecycle Network had engaged in naked licensing and thereby abandoned its trademarks. The risk arises when licensing agreements lack quality control provisions or when those provisions exist on paper but are not enforced. An enforcement attorney structures licenses to reduce this risk.

Yes. Enforcement is territorial, which means you need rights in each jurisdiction to take action in that jurisdiction. I hold bar admissions in California, Ontario, and Quebec, and I advise on enforcement on both sides of the border. In the US, a claim under 15 U.S.C. § 1125(a) does not require a federal registration. In Canada, section 7(b) of the Trademarks Act prohibits directing public attention to goods, services, or a business in a way likely to cause confusion with another's, and a CIPO registration gives the owner the exclusive right to use the trademark throughout Canada for the registered goods or services.

A TTAB opposition is a formal challenge to a trademark application during its 30-day publication window. If you discover a pending application that is confusingly similar to your mark, you have 30 days from the publication date to file an opposition or request an extension of time. If no opposition is filed in time and the mark registers, a challenge before the TTAB takes the form of a petition to cancel under 15 U.S.C. § 1064.

Major platforms — Amazon, eBay, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Shopify — have trademark complaint portals that allow rights holders to report infringing listings, accounts, and content. Requirements vary by platform. As of November 3, 2026, Amazon Brand Registry enrollment requires an active registered trademark or a pending trademark application, and YouTube states that it performs a limited review of reasonable complaints, forwards each trademark complaint to the uploader before taking any action, and removes content in clear cases of infringement. Documentation of the infringing use supports any complaint. For repeat infringers who refile after removal, we recommend a cease-and-desist combined with ongoing monitoring.

The Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) is an administrative proceeding in which the complainant must prove that the domain name is identical or confusingly similar to its mark, that the registrant has no rights or legitimate interests in it, and that it was registered and is being used in bad faith. A complaint can be filed with an approved provider such as WIPO or FORUM. The panel's remedies are limited to cancellation or transfer of the domain name, and the policy does not prevent either party from going to court. As of November 3, 2026, WIPO states that, if there are no procedural issues, a case normally should be completed within 2 months from the date WIPO receives the complaint.

Cost depends on the tool required. Our Strategic Letter engagement, a single-recipient cease-and-desist engagement, is a $1,995 flat fee. Platform complaints are a flat cost. We recommend starting with the least costly tool that fits and escalating only when necessary.