On Legal Protection Of Unregistered Well-known Trademarks

A well-know trademark attracts consumer’s attention, highlighting consumeridentity, and plays the role of the difference between the origin of goods or serviceswhich general trademark does not have. It is the results of the continuous training ofoperators in the competitive market conditions. It can bring great economic value tothe enterprise for the strong competitiveness in the market. In china, the trademarkcan obtain exclusive rights for registration, but some well-known trademarks failed toregistered for some reason. In practice，because our laws are too weak to protectunregistered well-known trademark which has leaded to serious infringement ofunregistered well-known trademark rights. Therefore, how to protect unregisteredwell-known trademark is very noteworthy.In order to deal with such cases helpfully in further judicial and administrativepractice, this paper analyzes a typical infringement trademark dispute case betweenUK Sotheby’s (SOTHEBY’S) and Si Chuan Su fu bi auction house Auction Co., Ltd.This paper is divided into five parts: the first part introduces the case andgeneralization about focus of dispute; second part analysis the identified unregisteredwell-known trademarks; third part is the analysis of the unregistered well-knowntrademark law protection system; fourth part is the analysis of the unregisteredwell-known trademark infringement liability relief; fifth part is the recommend of ourcountry unregistered well-known trademark protection system.The first part of the article, the author briefly describes the infringementtrademark dispute case between British Sotheby’s (SOTHEBY’S) and Si Chuan Sufu bi auction house Auction Co., Ltd., refining the focus of controversy three cases:the unregistered connotation of well-known trademarks identified factors;unregistered well-known trademark infringement identified; unregistered well-knowntrademark legal remedies.The second part of the article, the author briefly introduces defined and identifiedfactors of unregistered well-known trademarks, through by analysis of the domesticand foreign-related law. Well-known trademark is widely known to the relevantpublic and prestigious trademark. Determination subjects include the people’s courtand the state administration of industry and commerce; Determination standards are deem to comprehensive consideration of the scope of the relevant public,geographical scope and the use of the trademark.The third part of the article discusses the system of legal protection ofunregistered well-known trademarks. In china, we provide two synergistic protectivepathway to unregistered well-known trademarks mainly through the "TrademarkLaw" Article13, paragraph1, and the corresponding judicial interpretation"Anti-Unfair Competition Law for the analysis of the relevant legal norms. Throughanalysis of the trial of the case, the author introduces the relevant factors whichshould be considered in trademark infringement identified.In the fourth section, the paper discusses the problems in the “bad faith” ofabusive registered as well as the exercise of the right to revoke by expoundingtrademark infringement remedies. And analysis of the current judicial practice ofunregistered well-known trademark protection, the lack of liability relief provisions ofthe corresponding measures to improve.In the fifth part of the article mainly introduce the anti-dilution theory to providemore comprehensive protection for unregistered well-known trademark, whileinsufficient levy anti-dilution theory and the restrictions to be perfect. To preventunregistered well-known trademark become a common name and complete theunregistered well-known trademarks of the basic precondition identified factors toimprove unregistered well-known trademark law protection system.