The Matter Of ‘Prior Use'

The prior use of a designation does not provide any advantage in Russia, in terms of registration of this designation as a trademark.

This means that the prior use of a designation by one company (hereinafter – the brand user) does not preclude another company either from registering the said designation as a trademark nor from using the designation without having it registered as a trademark. However, if the prior use of a particular designation meets particular criteria, it can be relied on in order to challenge further registrations as well as to prohibit the use of same/similar designations by other companies. Furthermore, the said remedies lay in the area of the Competition law rather than the trademark law. If the brand user does not hold any trademark or IP right to its brand, the only option left is to appeal to the Competition Law.