A trademark is vital for business growth and maintaining its brand. Such trademarks help identify a particular brand and its products. This means Trademark registration is very essential for any kind of business. An important thing to remember here is as per the Indian Trademark Act, the significance of evidence in proving the rights of the trademark owner goes a long way in finding out the cases of infringement.

So, what is Evidence of Use?

Evidence of use in trademark registration indicates that the trademark has been used in the marketplace in relation to goods or services. Providing evidence of use is highly important since it helps in demonstrating the rights of the user over the trademark.

If you fail to provide sufficient evidence that would support enforcing your rights, then you may have a devastating impact on a case. Looking into previous cases, trademark rights probably can be vulnerable to cancellation actions if the owner of the trademark fails to validate the evidence of use. If the user finds any difficulties in protecting his rights and establishing his ownership over the trademark, hiring a trademark attorney can be the right choice.

Documents for evidence of use for a trademark

Looking upon section 11 of the Trademarks Act, 1999, the following documents will prove the evidence of use.

✔       Commercial invoices and bills

✔       Visiting cards of the proprietor that comprise trademark

✔       Labelling of boxes of goods that have the trademark application

✔        Press publication/reports of the products

✔       Website screenshots that include trademark

✔       Advertising materials can be presented that cover billboards, brochures, and posters

✔       Licensing agreements for manufacturing

✔       Any documentary proof of an event sponsored by the proprietor (where the trademark is utilized)

✔       Reports /data that reveal the market share of the goods/service

The above list is for your reference related to documents for evidence use. The owner of the trademark can submit as many as possible documents that could prove trademark specialist ownership.

Need to navigate the evidence of use seamlessly? Contact Muthirai; our trademark lawyer will ensure a successful grant of registration for your trademark.