United Kingdom Trade Mark Law - Historical Legislation

Historical Legislation

In 1862 the Merchandise Marks Act made it a criminal offence to imitate another's trade mark 'with intent to defraud or to enable another to defraud'. In 1875 the Trade Marks Registration Act was passed which allowed formal registration of trade marks at the UK Patent Office for the first time. Registration was considered to comprise prima facie evidence of ownership of a trade mark and registration of marks began on 1 January 1876. The 1875 Act defined a registrable trade mark as 'a device, or mark, or name of an individual or firm printed in some particular and distinctive manner; or a written signature or copy of a written signature of an individual or firm; or a distinctive label or ticket'. However, any word or name that was in use as a trade mark before the passing of the Act (in August 1875) was entitled to registration, whether or not the mark fulfilled these criteria.

In 1883 the Patents and Trade Marks Act substantially revised trade mark law, reducing the cost of application, and included the facility to register 'fancy words not in common use' and 'brands' as new marks for the first time. Further major trade mark acts were passed in 1888 and 1905 (which both further refined definitions of a trade mark), 1919 (which separated the trademark register into Parts A and B, each of which had different registration criteria) and 1938, the last of which remained in force until it was superseded in 1994.