EL-NCOM
Trade names
The name under which the business trades.
Businesses identify themselves by the name under which they carry on commercial, industrial, agricultural or craft activities. Recording that name at OAPI is, in most member-State laws, an extra formality when a company is formed — and a first strategic layer of protection.
Who it is for
Companies in formation, groups changing name, and owners of a name already in use.
Typical path
- Qualify the subject-matter: what can be protected, and in what form.
- Search prior rights (identical, then similar).
- Prepare and file the application, pay the fees, follow examination.
- Maintain the title, watch the Gazette, enforce if it is attacked.