Graham Hood discusses the risks of “U.S. centricity” in Canadian trademark practice at IPLSPRING Virtual

Smart & Biggar partner Graham Hood will speak on the panel “The Perils of U.S. Centricity in Trademark Practice: What U.S. Companies and Their Attorneys Assume about Foreign TM Laws at Their Own Risk” on April 12, as part of the American Bar Association – Intellectual Property Law (ABA-IPL) Section conference, IPLSPRING Virtual.

Joined by fellow trademark practitioners from the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil and China, Graham will explore the common pitfalls encountered by U.S. brand owners in prosecuting their trademarks in Canada, and teach attendees how to avoid them.

The panel will discuss how frequent misapprehensions arising from a U.S. perspective can cause issues with use requirements, the registrability of certain types of trademarks, refusals or objections based on third-party rights, and the scope, classification and description of goods and services.

IPLSPRING Virtual is comprised of eight days of governance meetings, CLE education, presentations by the world’s IP experts, and multiple networking opportunities on a virtual platform that will offer attendees a dynamic and interactive experience.

Smart & Biggar is widely recognized as Canada’s leading firm for intellectual property law, with offices in Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. We are leaders in intellectual and technology law and have been serving clients for over a century.