Monitor the market, use the internet and follow the activities of your competitors. There are also companies that can monitor this for you. If you operate in several marketplaces and with large quantities of goods, it may be appropriate to cooperate with customs authorities, so that they can stop the imports if there is suspicion of illegal copies.

You can also use our Alert Service. Then we will let you know if someone is applying to register rights within the same field as you.
More info about setting up an alert

Trademarks  |  Designs  |  Patents

Trademarks: is someone using your trademark?

Have you discovered that others are using a trademark that is similar to your own, for the same or similar goods or services? This may be a violation of your rights.

You can contact the other party and explain your position. It pays to make written contact so that you can document it at a later date. You should attach a copy of your trademark registration and ask the other party to stop using your trademark. In many cases you will be successful in stopping them by documenting the fact that you have exclusive rights to the trademark.

If the other party does not agree with you or take your registration into account, you can take legal action before the courts. You should consult an attorney who specializes in intellectual property rights. A documented right in the form of a trademark registration will show the date of filing of the design with the NIPO. This will be of great importance if the case goes to trial.

Designs: is someone copying your designs?

If you discover that someone else is selling a design that you regard to be an infringement of your design registration, you should consider whether the other design has the same overall appearance as your design.

If it is an infringement, you should contact the other party and explain your point of view. It pays to make written contact so that you can document it at a later date. You should also include a copy of your design registration, and ask the other party to stop using the design. In many cases you will be successful in stopping them by documenting the fact that you have exclusive rights to the design.

If the other party does not agree with you or take your registration into account, you will have to go to litigation before the courts. You should consult an attorney who specializes in intellectual property rights. A documented right in the form of a design registration will show the date of filing of the design with the NIPO. This will be of great importance in an eventual trial.

Patents: is someone infringing your patent?

It may be necessary to engage the services of a patent attorney or law firm.

It is common to first send a letter to the person you believe is infringing your rights. It will often be possible to come to a solution by negotiation, but sometimes the case must be resolved in court.

To stop the infringement, the courts can quickly issue a so-called preliminary injunction. This means that your competitor will be required to halt the production, marketing and sales of the product until the case comes to trial. Taking the case through the legal system takes longer, and the court will make a decision if compensation is granted. You can demand compensation from the time the patent application was published. Litigation will take place in each country, and if you have to defend the patent in several countries, the cost can be significant. In the long term there will be a Joint Patent Court for many of the EU countries.