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Trademark & IP Protection · Portugal & EU

A brand you haven't registered is a brand you don't own.

We register trademarks and commercial names in Portugal, across the EU, and internationally — and defend them when someone decides your good idea looks like a good idea to them too.

Why register at all

Trademark rights are first-to-file, not first-to-think-of-it.

In Portugal and across the EU, protection generally goes to whoever registers first — not whoever used the name first, and certainly not whoever loved it most. Wait until you're successful, and you may find someone has quietly registered your own brand ahead of you.

Registration turns a logo into an asset: something you can license, enforce, put on a balance sheet, and sell. We make sure it's registered in the right name, in the right classes, in the right territories — the first time.

THE SHORT VERSION

Three levels. One decision.

Protect the mark in Portugal only, across all 27 EU states with a single EU trademark, or reach dozens of countries through the international system. The right level depends on where you sell now and where you'll sell next — we help you choose without over-buying.

Choose your territory

National, European, or global. Precisely as far as you need.

Each level is a different registry and a different cost-to-reach ratio. Buying more territory than your business touches is a common, avoidable expense.

Level 1 · Portugal

National trademark

Protection within Portugal

The right first move if your market is domestic, or if you want to secure the Portuguese right before expanding. Fast and cost-efficient.

Filed at INPI, Lisbon
Level 3 · International

Madrid System

Dozens of countries, one application

Extend a Portuguese or EU mark to markets beyond Europe — the US, UK, Gulf, LATAM — through a single international application.

Via WIPO, Geneva
Beyond the logo

Four kinds of intellectual property. All worth owning.

A brand is more than a wordmark. We register and advise across the assets that actually carry your value.

Trademarks & wordmarks

Names, slogans and combined marks — the core registrations that stop competitors trading on your identity.

  • Word, figurative and combined marks
  • Correct Nice classification of goods/services
  • National, EU and international filing

Commercial names

The name your company trades under — protected so a competitor can't operate under something confusingly close.

  • Trade name and establishment name protection
  • Coordination with your registered company name
  • Clearance against existing rights

Designs & logos

The look of a product or its packaging — registrable as a design at national and EU level.

  • Registered Community Designs
  • Product shape and packaging protection
  • Portfolio strategy across marks and designs

Domains & IP advisory

The digital footprint and the strategy tying it all together — so your rights online and offline point the same way.

  • Domain acquisition and dispute support
  • Licensing, assignment and IP contracts
  • Ongoing portfolio and rights advisory
The process

From name to enforceable right.

A registration is only as strong as the search and classification behind it. We do the unglamorous groundwork — because a mark that sails through filing but collapses under a challenge protects nobody.

Timelines vary by territory: a smooth EU mark can register in a matter of months if no one opposes; an opposition can extend that. We set expectations honestly at the start.

1
Clearance searchWe check existing marks in your target registries to gauge the real risk of refusal or opposition.
2
ClassificationGoods and services mapped to the correct Nice classes — too few leaves gaps, too many wastes fees.
3
FilingApplication lodged at INPI, EUIPO or via WIPO, depending on your chosen territory.
4
Examination & oppositionWe handle office objections and the opposition window — responding to third parties who challenge the mark.
5
Registration & monitoringCertificate issued, then watch services and renewals to keep the right alive and unencroached.
AFTER REGISTRATION

A right you don't defend is a right you slowly lose.

We monitor for conflicting applications, send and answer cease-and-desist letters, file oppositions, and act against infringement and counterfeits — nationally and across the EU.

Enforcement & monitoring

Registration is the start of ownership, not the end.

Once your mark is on the register, the job shifts from securing it to keeping it. New applicants appear, lookalikes launch, marketplaces get flooded with copies.

We watch the registries on your behalf, flag conflicts early while they're cheap to stop, and escalate to formal action only when it's warranted. Quiet vigilance beats expensive litigation.

Questions we're asked

Trademarks, demystified.

The questions founders ask right before — or, too often, right after — a problem.

If you only sell in Portugal, a national INPI mark is enough and cheaper. The moment you sell (or plan to sell) elsewhere in Europe, a single EU trademark covering all 27 member states is usually far better value than filing country by country. We'll recommend based on where your customers actually are, not where they might theoretically be.

Trademarks are registered for specific categories of goods and services under the international Nice Classification. Your protection only extends to the classes you file in. Choose too narrowly and a competitor can use your name in an adjacent category; too broadly and you pay for coverage you'll never use — and risk challenges for non-use. Getting the classes right is most of the skill.

An unopposed EU trademark can typically register within a few months; a national mark can be quicker. The variable is opposition — a third party has a window to object, and if they do, the timeline extends. A proper clearance search up front is the best way to avoid nasty surprises later.

It depends on who registered first and in which classes and territories. Sometimes there's room for both parties; sometimes there's a clear infringement to act on; occasionally you're the one at risk. We assess the position honestly — including the uncomfortable version — before recommending a cease-and-desist, an opposition, a coexistence agreement, or a rebrand.

Effectively yes, if you maintain them. Registrations run in ten-year terms and can be renewed indefinitely. But they can be cancelled for non-use, and they need active defence against encroachment. We handle renewals and monitoring so the right doesn't quietly lapse or erode.

Register the brand before someone else does.

Send us your name, logo and markets. We'll run a clearance search, recommend the right territories and classes, and give you a clear route to an enforceable right.