How do you do a trademark search?

We have paid subscription to professional trademark search software. It’s called “Corsearch”. We offer comprehensive trademark research with the purchase of any of our packages.

***Please try to be as specific as possible when listing your products. We need to know the actual products in order to do a proper research and determine your trademark reliability.

Examples:

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  “Home products” or “household products” is too broad. Kitchen appliances, tableware, kitchen pots is specific enough.
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  “Bath products” is unclear. Bath towels, cleaning preparations, shower mats is good.
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  “Baby products” is too broad and vague. We need to know what they are. For example, baby clothing, baby diapers, baby bibs, rattle toys, baby food, baby blankets is what we need.
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  “Garden products” is too vague. Please specify what they are, i.e. fertilizers, spades, flower seeds, waters hoses, garden tools, garden lights.
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  “Cosmetics” is acceptable. “Vitamins and supplements” is acceptable. “Computer software” is acceptable for the search. “Hair care preparations” and “jewerly” are also sufficiently specific.
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  If you are a consultant or coach, please explain the nature of your services and who your target clients are.
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  Can a trademark registration search guarantee that your mark will be registered? Please continue reading to find out!

Why a trademark search is never 100% accurate and more about comprehensive trademark searches

Although a trademark search is handy and necessary to determine if a mark is registrable, the risk and challenge are never eliminated. A comprehensive examination may uncover exclusively some potentially conflicting defects for several reasons.

In the United States or Canada, a newcomer to the search process might expect that it would suffice to check only the records of the USPTO or CIPO. However, one must rely on more than just a Trademark Office database search since registration is unnecessary to obtain trademark rights in the United States or Canada.

Many valid trademarks exist in common law without appearing on the trademark register.

Thus, in addition to checking the Trademark Office database, one should check the Internet and different marketplaces, including Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Shopify, and company databases, looking for the use of unregistered marks.

Searching common-law marks is not easy and is never cheap since no single source lists every unregistered mark in current use in the United States or Canada. Many potential sources of information could be searched for, and it is not economical to try to explore them all. By way of example, a complete search in the U.S. will cost you $1500.

Additionally, one can only expect some sources to provide accurate, complete, and up-to-date information when the search is conducted because every database has its limits.