On September 28, 2016, Simon Lemay and Jean-Philippe Turgeon, both partners at Lavery, presented at the “Développements récents en droit de la franchise” (“Recent developments in Franchising law”) conference organized by the Barreau du Québec. Their presentation was entitled “La propriété intellectuelle en matière de franchise : au-delà de l’enregistrement de vos marques” (“Franchise IP: beyond trademark registration”).
During their presentation, they specifically observed that there is a strategic advantage for franchisors who consider all the trade-mark options, in particular distinguishing guises and non-traditional marks. They also spoke about new opportunities under the amended Trade-marks Act. Last, they reviewed recent jurisprudence and made several practical recommendations.