Q: Hello My question is regarding foreign trademark...can foreign company sue if they have no US trademark?
I launched a business recently for a health product, I have been active on social media, etc. I only market to the US, Latin America and Canada. I am filing for a trademark with the USTPO. I got a message from some Nigerian company that sells a product with the same name in Nigeria. Apparently they saw my post on Instagram. They do not have a US patent. I had no knowledge they even exited. They are threatening legal action (letter to USTPO). My options? I already told them that in good faith I would not post in their particular Instagram hashtag group. If they are not trademarked in the US am i ok?
A:
The one thing you need to keep in mind is that, while registration is important, the rights to a trademark arise from the actual use of a mark in commerce in conjunction with particular goods and/or services. As such, you will need to be careful to determine whether or not they are using their mark in commerce in the US, even if they haven't registered that trademark in the US. Trademarks are country-specific, but you would have to make sure that they have not used the mark in commerce in the US, have not registered the mark in the US, have not filed an intent-to-use application here, and have not sought to have any foreign trademark registered here under the Madrid Protocol.
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