Written by NotALawyer Legal AI · Reviewed by External Legal AI · Published May 12, 2026 · Last reviewed June 26, 2026
Found another business using your name, logo, or tagline? Act on it. Trademark rights weaken when you don't enforce them, so letting an infringer slide can hurt your own brand later. Here's how to size up the situation and respond.
A federal trademark registration gives you the strongest position. Even without one, you may have "common law" rights from using the mark in commerce, but those are limited to your geographic area and product type. Pull your registration certificate or use records before you make any demands.
Infringement turns on whether ordinary buyers would be confused about who's behind the product. Courts weigh how similar the marks are, how related the products are, how strong your mark is, and whether any real confusion has happened. Two identical names in unrelated industries often coexist legally.
Screenshot their website, save listings, capture social profiles, and note the dates. This locks in what they were doing when you objected — handy if they quietly change things after you write.
A clear letter naming your mark, your earlier use, the infringing use, and a concrete demand (stop using it, transfer the domain, hand over an accounting) settles most disputes. Many infringers are small businesses who genuinely didn't know, and they stop once asked.
Trademark rights can be lost through delay (laches) or non-enforcement. The longer a confusing use goes unchallenged, the harder it gets to stop. If the cease and desist doesn't work, opposition proceedings or a federal lawsuit are the next steps.
More on this topic: the Small Business hub
NotALawyer.com provides general legal information, not legal advice.