Trade Name Infringement Letter

Trade name infringement

A trade name is the name of your company in commerce. It is possible to submit one or more trade names when registering with the Chamber of Commerce.

If someone is using the same name or a name that strongly resembles your trade name, you can protest. Your company name or trade name is protected by Article 5 of the Trade Name Act. Please find the wording of the Act here (Dutch).

What to fill in yourself

You must indicate the main legal requirements, namely that:

• Registered the trade name;
• Actively using this trade name;
• Using this trade name in a particular country or region.

You request the infringer to stop using the trade name immediately. You state that you will recover any possible damage from them. Download our Trade Name Infringement Letter and all you have to do is fill in the blanks.

Summary

Contains provisions on:

• Details of your registration with the CoC;
• Statement of confusion;
• Request to cease immediately;
• Announcement of further legal action.

Context

This document can be used in the following situation:
A trade name offers less protection than a right to a trademark. Nonetheless you are eligible for protection. For instance, another party is not allowed to do business under the same company name as yours. This is prohibited if there is a risk of confusion. Therefore it is helpful if you are able to demonstrate that there is confusion about the company name.

Please take into account that you have to be active on the market. You have to be able to prove this. Furthermore you must have been registered under this trade name before the infringer entered the market.

A trade name is not limited by the name of your business. It is possible to protect other names under which you operate. For instance the domain name Overeenkomsten.nl cannot be protected as a brand. It has been registered with the Camber of Commerce as a trade name. By doing so there is a certain level of protection.