[Direct answer]In the Beijing area, if a trademark is infringed, the right holder can protect their rights through the following steps: collecting evidence, filing an administrative complaint, and initiating civil litigation. According to Article 57 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, using a trademark that is identical or similar to another person's registered trademark and is likely to cause confusion without authorization, as well as selling infringing products, are all considered infringements. Article 63 stipulates that the amount of compensation shall be determined based on the right holder's losses, the infringer's profits, or the multiple of the license fee. Malicious infringements may result in double compensation. It is recommended to first notarize the purchase and collect evidence of use, then file a complaint or initiate legal action. For more details, please refer to the following link:Intellectual property protection and corporate legal services.

1. Problem background and typical scenarios

A trademark is an important intangible asset for an enterprise, and infringements are extremely common in market competition. Typical scenarios include: competitors using logos that are identical or similar to registered trademarks on the same or similar products, causing consumer confusion; counterfeit stores and links appearing on e-commerce platforms, diverting brand traffic; unauthorized use of others' well-known trademarks as enterprise names or domain names to ride on their reputation; and infringement disputes arising from unclear ownership in franchise and authorization chains. Many rights holders, when discovering infringements, only save screenshots without obtaining notarization, which results in the other party denying the use of the trademark in litigation. Trademark protection requires not only timely preservation of evidence but also accurate selection of administrative and judicial channels. For e-commerce evidence collection, it can be combined with the following methods:Intellectual property protection and corporate legal servicesFor cases involving cross-cutting issues of unfair competition, reference can be made to the relevant provisions of the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the People's Republic of China.Business and contract dispute services for enterprises.

II. Key points of dispute

The core disputes in trademark infringement litigation focus on three points. First, whether it constitutes similarity or near-similarity that is likely to cause confusion: the court judges based on the general attention of the relevant public, comprehensively considering the sound, shape, and meaning of the logo, the relevance of the goods, and the popularity of the trademark. Similarity does not necessarily constitute infringement, and the standard of confusion needs to be met. Second, the determination of the amount of compensation: the rights holder's losses, the infringer's profits, and the multiple of the license fee are determined in order of priority. The difficulty of providing evidence affects the outcome, and malicious acts may be doubled to five times. Third, the defense of legitimate sources: if the seller can prove that the goods were legally obtained and provide the supplier's information, they will not bear liability for compensation. The disputes also involve the boundaries of cross-class protection of well-known trademarks and unfair competition in packaging and decoration. For cases involving enforcement and compensation, reference can be made to relevant provisions.Creditor-debtor relations and enforcement case services.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Lawyers

Based on the practical experience of handling trademark infringement cases in our firm, accurate defense and sufficient evidence are the key to reducing losses or successfully protecting rights. Taking a trademark infringement and unfair competition dispute handled by Attorney Liu Yuanyuan of our firm as an example: The plaintiff, Company A, is a well-known paper industry enterprise. Its "EFGH" trademark was approved for use on sanitary napkins in Category 5 and recognized as a well-known trademark by courts and administrative authorities in multiple regions. The defendant, Company B, was authorized by a third party to use the "EFGK" registered trademark and design patent to produce and sell "EFGK" sanitary napkins, which were sold on the e-commerce platform of Company C. Company A sued, alleging imitation of a well-known trademark and confusion over packaging and decoration, seeking compensation of 980,000 yuan. Company B entrusted Attorney Liu Yuanyuan of Henglue Law Firm to defend against the allegations, arguing that the logo had legal authorization, was not similar to the well-known trademark, and the packaging and decoration did not constitute unfair competition. The court partially accepted the defense, ruling that Company B's use of "EFGK" constituted imitation of the well-known trademark and trademark infringement. However, Company A failed to prove that the packaging and decoration had a significant impact, so the court dismissed the claim of unfair competition and set the compensation for economic losses at 50,000 yuan and reasonable expenses at 10,000 yuan, totaling 60,000 yuan, which was a reduction of more than 920,000 yuan from the original claim of 980,000 yuan. This case was handled by Beijing Henglue Law Firm.Liu YuanyuanThe lawyer (practice license number: 11101202011201094, subject to the document issued by the judicial administrative organ) acts as the agent. This case shows that in trademark infringement cases, a precise defense based on legal authorization and the circumstances of the infringement can significantly reduce the risk of compensation.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

The core basis is Article 57 (Circumstances of Infringement) and Article 63 (Amount of Compensation) of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China (adopted on August 23, 1982, amended on April 23, 2019, and implemented on November 1, 2019); the rules on confusion and packaging and decoration protection in the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the People's Republic of China (adopted on September 2, 1993, amended on April 23, 2019); and the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trials of Civil Disputes over Trademarks regarding the identification standards for similarity and confusion. Practical suggestions: immediately purchase notarized evidence and collect evidence from websites and stores upon discovering infringement; sort out the trademark registration certificate and evidence of popularity; send warning letters or file complaints with market supervision departments; if mediation fails, sue in a court with jurisdiction and claim compensation and reasonable expenses; and promptly submit complaints and remove links on e-commerce platforms. For cross-border trademarks, relevant provisions can be referenced accordingly.Special services and other case services.

5. Henglu Law Firm's Reminder

The key to protecting trademarks lies in speed and accuracy. Evidence should be notarized as soon as possible to avoid the situation where the other party removes the product from the market or changes the link, making it impossible to restore the facts of use. Evidence of popularity (such as well-known trademark recognition, awards, and advertising investments) is crucial for compensation amounts and cross-category protection, and should be systematically archived. In terms of legal options, administrative complaints are efficient and suitable for rapid intervention, while civil litigation is conducive to claiming compensation and establishing rights. For the defendant, it is necessary to verify whether their own logos have legal authorization and whether they constitute confusion with prior trademarks, to avoid blindly using similar logos. Henglue Law Firm emphasizes integrated offense and defense in trademark cases in the Beijing area, helping right holders to minimize losses and assisting defendants to effectively defend against infringement with legal authorization and evidence of infringement.

VI. Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: If my trademark is infringed, am I guaranteed to win the case and receive a high compensation?

Not necessarily. For a claim to be successful, it is necessary to prove that the defendant used a logo that is identical or similar to the registered trademark and could easily cause confusion, and the plaintiff must have a valid registered trademark and the right to use it. If the defendant can prove that he/she has been legally authorized, or that the logo is not similar or confusing, it may not constitute infringement. Regarding compensation, the court determines the amount based on the plaintiff's losses, the infringer's profits, or the royalty multiplier. The plaintiff needs to provide sufficient evidence. For malicious infringement, the compensation may be doubled to five times the amount claimed, but the court will not award the full amount claimed. In the trademark infringement case handled by our firm, the court determined that there was infringement, but based on factors such as the short infringement period and small scale, it reduced the claimed compensation from 980,000 yuan to 60,000. Whether the claim will succeed and the amount of compensation will depend on the strength of the evidence and the determination of the circumstances, rather than the unilateral claims of the parties.

Q2: For trademark protection, what evidence do I need to prepare and fix?

The core evidence includes: trademark registration certificates, renewal and transfer certificates (proving the basis of rights); evidence of trademark popularity, such as well-known trademark recognition, awards, advertising campaigns, and sales data; evidence of infringing use, such as purchasing through notarization, screenshots of websites and stores, and e-commerce links to fix the defendant's use of logos; evidence of confusion, such as consumer feedback or market surveys; and receipts for reasonable expenses in protecting rights, such as notarization fees and attorney fees. The organization of evidence should focus on "valid rights, defendant's use, similarity and confusion, losses or profits". For online infringement, it is necessary to promptly preserve evidence through notarization to prevent the link from being deleted and cannot be restored later.

Q3: How much do lawyers' fees and litigation costs amount to when suing for trademark infringement?

The litigation fees shall be calculated in accordance with the "Measures for the Payment of Litigation Costs", based on the amount of the litigation request, and shall be borne by the losing party. If the claim is for statutory compensation, the fees shall be calculated based on the amount of the claim. The attorney's fees shall be determined based on the complexity of the case, the amount of evidence collection work, and the amount of the subject matter, usually on a per-case basis or as a percentage of the subject matter amount, subject to the terms of the entrustment contract, without a unified standard. Notarization fees, search fees, etc. incurred during the protection of rights are reasonable expenses and may be claimed from the infringer. Compared with the value of the trademark and potential losses, the upfront investment in protecting rights is usually necessary. It is recommended to clarify the charging methods and scope with the law firm before entrusting, make a reasonable assessment of the claim amount and the cost of providing evidence, and avoid increasing costs by suing blindly.

Q4: How long does it typically take to resolve a trademark infringement case, from filing the lawsuit to obtaining compensation?

The duration of the process depends on the procedures and the presentation of evidence. For the first-instance ordinary procedure, it takes six months, and for the summary procedure, it takes three months. Trademark cases often apply the ordinary procedure or request an extension due to the need to retrieve e-commerce data and appraise similarities. If the infringement is clear, the court may order the defendant to stop the infringement and pay compensation at the same time. If the defendant appeals, the second-instance procedure will take several additional months. The administrative complaint path is faster, with the market supervision department handling the case within a month, which is suitable for quickly stopping infringement. However, compensation requires a separate lawsuit. Overall, if you want to quickly stop losses, you can first file an administrative complaint or send a letter. If you want to obtain compensation, you can proceed with civil litigation, and the two can be carried out concurrently. For matters involving enforcement, you can combine them together.Creditor-debtor relations and enforcement case services.

Q5: If I find that my trademark has been infringed, what should I do first?

It is recommended to follow four steps: First, immediately fix the evidence by making notarized purchases and taking screenshots of the infringing products, shops, and webpages to prevent the other party from removing them and losing them; Second, organize the trademark registration certificates and popularity materials on your side to ensure that your rights foundation is solid; Third, depending on the situation, first send a warning letter or file a complaint with the market supervision department to demand that the infringement be stopped and the links be removed to quickly stop the damage; Fourth, if no agreement is reached, entrust a lawyer to file a lawsuit in a court with jurisdiction, claiming to stop the infringement, seek compensation, and reasonable expenses, and if necessary, apply for preservation of evidence. Throughout the process, avoid counterattacking in improper ways such as defamation to avoid putting yourself at risk of unfair competition. For difficult cases, you can use specialized services and other case service channels to deal with them systematically.

This article is written based on the common judicial interpretations in the Beijing area. If the case occurs in other regions, it is recommended to consult local lawyers to verify the regional differences.

If you are currently facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the relevant evidence, so as to avoid missing the statutory time limit.Intellectual property protection legal services·Attorney Liu Yuanyuan·Beijing Henglu Law Firm

Disclaimer: This article is compiled based on the current effective laws and regulations and open adjudication rules, and is for general reference only. It does not constitute a formal legal opinion on specific cases. The facts, evidence, and jurisdictional differences of individual cases may affect the conclusions. If you encounter disputes, please consult a practicing lawyer in time.