The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) has a database of all registered trademarks in Canada. This database contains names, logos, sounds, colours, and other intellectual property available for anyone looking for an existing trademark. Performing a trademarks search in Canada can help ensure that your new trademark does not infringe on another registered trademark.
If you want to search for similar trademarks to be sure you are not violating any intellectual property laws, this guide to navigating the Canadian trademarks database can help your search and ease some of the common frustrations that come from trying to find trademarks that are similar to yours.
Your best option is to hire a professional intellectual property (IP) attorney with the knowledge and experience of searching through the confusing parameters of the Canadian trademarks database.
Why Search for Existing Trademarks
Trademark registration is essential in protecting yourself from someone copying your name, logo, or design. If you violate these laws, you can be fined up to a million dollars and receive jail time. Performing a Trademark Search in Canada before registering your intellectual property will help you avoid rejection of your trademark by the CIPO.
You can use the database for more than just finding existing trademarks. The Canadian trademarks database can help you discover trends among your competition and help you stay up to date with changing trends. You can locate similar businesses to approach for new partnerships or expansion opportunities. Or just to see what your competitors are doing with their branding and develop new strategies to stay relevant.
Registering Your Trademark
Some words, phrases, logos, or images do not qualify for registration as a trademark.
- Names and surnames
- Places of origin
- Words in other languages
- Trademarks similar to official marks
- Descriptive words
Availability of Trademarks
Searching for similar trademarks can help you avoid rejection from the CIPO. When you register your trademark, a Trademark Examiner will compare your trademark against all registered trademarks in Canada to ensure it does not infringe on any existing trademark or intellectual property.
If you receive a denial, you will need to update your trademark and submit it again, which can cost several hundred dollars each time.
Canadian Trademarks Database Search Options
The Canadian Trademarks Database contains more than 1.4 million Canadian trademarks, and each year the number of applications increases. Once you register a trademark with them, it stays in their database as active or inactive, including canceled, expunged, or abandoned trademarks after 1979.
Basic Trademark Search Options
When you go to the Canadian trademarks database website, you will have basic and advanced search options. The basic search option only has two fields:
- Select a search field – Select an application field you want to search. These are fields that are on a trademark application. This can be an application number, trademark registration number, owner name, or TM lookup.
- Enter search criteria – Narrow your search criteria by entering a name or number based on the field you want to search.
Your search results will bring up every record in the database within your search parameters. The search field default is All, and if you are not sure what field you want to search in, you can leave it there, but your results will be much larger.
You can click to add another search criteria button to include an additional search field to help narrow your search. The Operator field options include and, or, and but not. Next, select the next application field. You can have search criteria such as:
- Application Number: 5897
AND
Owner Name: John Smith
- Trademark Description: Dave’s Auto Emporium
BUT NOT
Trademark Description: Dave’s Auto Junkyard
- Current Owner Name: Bill Jones
OR
Old Owner Name: Jacob Smith
Advanced Options
If you want to be more specific with your search, there are several advanced search options you can select:
- Category/Type/Status
- Action Dates
- Vienna Classification
- Display Result Options
Category
All trademarks fall into specific categories, such as:
- Trademarks
- Certification Marks
- Distinguishing Guise
- Geographical Indications
- Plant Breeder’s Right Denomination
- Prohibited/Official Marks
- Other marks
If you are not sure of the category, leave it to All.
Type
What type of trademark do you need to find? A trademark can be many things: colour, holograms, motion, sound, scent, taste, and much more.
Status
Your best option is to leave this set to All so you can see all current and past trademarks. If you know the status of what you are looking for, your options are:
- All active
- Pending
- Registered
- All inactive
If your search results come up with nothing, you may have too many options in your search criteria. Try starting with a basic search and then narrow it down with more options, adding each one in between searches.
Action Dates
Action dates are the dates where progress happens on your trademark application within the CIPO. You have the following options:
- Filed
- Advertised
- Registered
- International registration date
- Registration expiry date
- Inactivated
You can add multiple date ranges, including filing and advertising dates.
Vienna Classifications
The Vienna classification is a numeric system for identifying non-word trademarks, like sound, logos, graphic designs, and more. Luckily, you do not have to know the number to a specific non-word trademark as you have 29 different categories to narrow your search, including:
- Human beings
- Animals
- Construction
- Landscape
- Supernatural, fabulous, fantastic, or unidentifiable beings
- Celestial bodies, natural phenomena, geographical maps
In each category, you have more options in the next group of fields. Division, Section, and Auxiliary. Each filter adjusts as you select an option from the previous field.
Display Results Options
You can choose how you want to see your results with two options:
- Return results as – select List or Grid
- Number of results returned – set the number of results from 100 – 5,000
Pitfalls of Searching Through the Canadian Trademarks Database
When you perform a basic trademarks search, you can end up with tens of thousands of similar results. It’s enough to make anyone give up and just take a chance on receiving a rejection from the CIPO, which can be a costly mistake.
Non-word trademarks are particularly difficult to search. The results will typically be much larger than word trademark searches and more confusing if you use too many search options, leaving you with a massive list to go through.
Most people do not have the time to search through that much data and decide to register anyway or not register at all, leading to a greater risk of trademark infringement which comes with massive fines and possible jail time.
Working with an Intellectual Property Attorney
Hiring an intellectual property attorney who knows the best ways to search through the millions of trademarks in the CIPO database can help save you time and money, helping you avoid numerous rejections due to similarities with your trademark.
They will help you understand what the results mean and what you need to do to register your trademark successfully. Sometimes it is as easy as changing a word or a part of your design so that it does not resemble another registered trademark. They can also help you with intellectual property litigation if you have a letter stating your unregistered trademark infringes on another.
If you need help searching through the millions of trademarks in the Canadian trademarks database, an IP attorney can help you with that search. You will reduce your risk of trademark rejection and protect yourself from future trademark infringement. Contact a professional intellectual property attorney today to help in your trademark search.
