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27 February 2017Trademarks

UKIPO figures suggest post-Brexit vote TM uptick

As UK trademark applications increased year-on-year, companies seem to have received the message of not panicking in light of the Brexit vote.

Last week, the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) released trademark filing figures for September 2015 to September 2016.

Between the two dates, around 63,500 applications were filed. In September 2016, the IPO received 5,390 applications, an increase of around 800 compared with 4,562 in September 2015.

Charlotte Duly, partner at Boult Wade Tennant, explained that comparing these results with those for the whole of 2015 suggests a 10% rise in trademark applications.

In 2015, around 54,000 applications were filed at the IPO.

“The significant but modest increase in trademark filings suggests that the message not to panic in light of Brexit has been received but that steps are being taken to shore up positions,” she said.

In May and June 2016, the data reported a general increase in filings, possibly in anticipation of the Brexit vote, which took place on June 23.

Duly said: “This is not surprising considering the uncertainty over treatment of EU trademarks (EUTMs) and designs and the nature of any transitional provisions post-Brexit.”

David Stone, head of the international brands practice at Allen & Overy, added that the data shows a post-Brexit “uptick” in trademark filings.

Allen & Overy is advising clients not to double file UK trademarks and EUTMs as the latter are sufficient at this point.

“If the UK leaves the EU, everyone agrees that there will be a mechanism to ‘redesignate’ EUTMs as UK trademarks. Whilst the UK government will likely charge for that, it won’t be as much as a new UK filing,” he said.

Stone advised practitioners to ensure that any new licensing or settlement agreements are specific on “what is meant by the EU” if they refer to that territory.

“You can futureproof against some of the uncertainty,” he said.

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