After five years of anticipation, sweeping changes to
Canada's trademark law will finally come into force on June 17,
2019. The changes, which are substantial, have been canvassed in
previous IP Updates. The following briefly summarizes some of
the most important changes and reminds trademark owners and
trademark practitioners of the implications.
1. Madrid Applications Available
Canadian applicants will be able to file applications in over 80
countries around the world through a single international
application. Access to the Madrid international filing system will
enable Canadian applicants to manage their international trademark
portfolios more efficiently.
Similarly, applicants from Madrid Protocol countries will be
able to designate Canada in their international applications as of
June 17th and will be able to subsequently
designate Canada in existing Madrid registrations.
