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ARTICLE · 14 OCTOBER 2015

World Trademark Review Yearbook 2016/2017: A Global Guide For Practitioners, Canada

Smart & Biggar
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In March 2014 the federal government introduced major amendments to the Trademarks Act – designed to facilitate implementation of the Nice Agreement, the Singapore Treaty and the Madrid Protocol – in Bill C-31

CanadaIntellectual Property
Bereskin & Parr LLP
Bereskin & Parr LLP
Tamara Winegust
Tamara Winegust
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Legal framework

National law

In March 2014 the federal government introduced major amendments to the Trademarks Act – designed to facilitate implementation of the Nice Agreement, the Singapore Treaty and the Madrid Protocol – in Bill C-31. However, Bill C-31 also contains fundamental changes to the current trademark legislation, including the elimination of use as a registration requirement. Bill C-31 received royal assent in June 2014 and the amendments are expected to come into force in 2017.

Bill C-8, the Combating Counterfeit Products Act, was introduced in 2013 to improve legal remedies for counterfeiting and address a longstanding trade issue. It was granted royal assent in December 2014 and new border detention provisions (the request for assistance), additional criminal penalties for counterfeiting and a broadened definition of 'trademark infringement' all came into force on January 1 2015. Additional changes are pending in Bill C-59. If passed, these

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