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§ 1-404. Authorization of registration

West's Annotated Code of MarylandBusiness RegulationEffective: October 1, 2020

West's Annotated Code of Maryland
Business Regulation (Refs & Annos)
Title 1. Definitions; General Provisions (Refs & Annos)
Subtitle 4. Trademarks, Service Marks, and Trade Names (Refs & Annos)
Effective: October 1, 2020
MD Code, Business Regulation, § 1-404
§ 1-404. Authorization of registration
(a) If a person uses a mark in the State, the person may register the mark in accordance with this subtitle.
(b) A person may not register a mark that:
(1) is deceptive, immoral, or scandalous;
(2) may disparage, falsely suggest a connection with, or bring into contempt or disrepute:
(i) a belief;
(ii) an individual, living or dead;
(iii) an institution; or
(iv) a national symbol;
(3) is, simulates, or includes a coat of arms, flag, or other insignia of a government;
(4) is or includes the name, portrait, or signature of a living individual, except with the written consent of the individual; or
(5) is likely, when applied to the goods or services of the person, to confuse or deceive because the mark resembles:
(i) another mark registered in the State; or
(ii) a mark or trade name that another person has used in the State and has not abandoned.
(c)(1) Unless the mark has become distinctive of the person's goods or services, a person may not register a mark that:
(i) only describes or deceptively misdescribes goods or services;
(ii) primarily describes or deceptively misdescribes the geographic origin of goods or services; or
(iii) is primarily an individual's name or surname.
(2) As evidence that a mark has become distinctive of the goods or services of a person, the Secretary of State may accept proof that the person has used the mark as a mark in the State or elsewhere continuously for at least 5 years immediately before the day on which the person applies for registration.
(d) A person may not register a trade name that is not a mark.

Credits

Added by Acts 1992, c. 4, § 2. Amended by Acts 2020, c. 501, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2020.
Formerly Art. 41, §§ 3-101, 3-102, 3-103.
MD Code, Business Regulation, § 1-404, MD BUS REG § 1-404
Current with all legislation from the 2023 Regular Session of the General Assembly. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
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