Trademark law, protection of trademarks

Trademark Protection in Hungary, Budapest

Lucrative success strategies require, on the one hand, systematic trademark images, harmonized with the product, the packaging, and other media advertisement aspects of the supply. On the other hand, legal continuity is also important, that is, the possibility to asset claims against imitators has to be given.

Accordingly, trademark law protects trademarks, business marks, and protected geographical indications from the usage of similar or identical mark sin the course of business activities.

The filing for protection has to take place as early as possible, because the trademark only gains priority by the day on which the request for trademark protection has been filed, and trademark protection starts with this day.

Trademark rights:

Besides the above, it is essential that professional trademark research is conducted prior to registration, because in case of the usage of rights of third persons with previous priority may lead to procedures before the DPMA, and the MSZH and to civil law claims, respectively, demanding the omission of usage (deletion) and damages.

International protection

In the scope of the WTO (World Trade Organization), 135 countries have accepted in the TRIPS-agreement (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) the minimal rules of protection of industrial property rights, based on which international protection is also possible. In trademark law, this means the filing of the trademark before the HABM in Alicante (Alicante, Harmonisierungsamt für den Binnenmarkt), and the WIPO (Genf, World Intellectual Property Organization).

In the following a short (non-exhaustive) summary follows on the differences between the German, Hungarian and EU-Community trademarks, and the IR-trademarks, respectively:

German/ Hungarian trademark:

  • Cost-efficient
  • Only nationally effective

EU-Community trademark:

  • Effective in all EU-Member States, with one filing
  • May exist besides German and Hungarian trademarks
  • In case of filing within 60 days from the German or Hungarian trademark filing, it takes over the national priority
  • For the maintenance of the right, the usage in only one Member State is enough
  • One successful complaint in one Member State is enough for deletion of the trademark regarding all countries

IR-trademark:

  • Valid in all Member States of the MMA, and the PMMA, respectively, with one filing
  • A lawful complaint in one country does not lead to deletion of the trademark in other countries
  • Bound by national laws
  • For the maintenance of the right, the usage in all Member States is required

Our services regarding trademark protection:

With the timely obtaining of legal assistance, mistakes may be eliminated in the planning period already, an ideal marketing strategy may be formed, which makes the planned company name, product name, or logo, sign, company law identification sign, domain name or working title a successful trademark.

  • Trademark protection of your name, sign, logo, company name
  • Professional trademark research in national and international registers and databases
  • Company name research D + HU + EU + IR
  • Domain-research
  • Title protection research
  • National trademark protection filing at DPMA (DE) and MSZH (HU)
  • European trademark filing at HABM (EU)
  • International IR-trademark filing and trademark extension at WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization (IR))
  • Complaints D + HU+ EU + IR • Lengthening of (national and international) trademark protection periods D + HU + EU + IR
  • Trademark follow-up and management of protection rights
  • Drafting and examination of license agreements
  • Asserting of and defense against claims of omission, information and damages
  • Legal representation in procedures initiated because of breaches of trademark rights
  • Preliminary legal counseling from the first notice until the writing of the omission note
  • Protection against product piracy
Our Contacts
We are ready to help you in our offices in Budapest and Hamburg.