Scammers are now impersonating lawyers from well-known firms, say IP experts
Trademark fraud in Canada is increasing, becoming more prevalent and increasingly sophisticated, lawyers say.
Scammers exploit public data to deceive trademark owners, using highly convincing but misleading correspondence that is difficult to detect as fraudulent. More fraudsters are now impersonating lawyers from well-established firms, adding to the deception, they say.
May Cheng, an IP lawyer at Dipchand LLP, and Meghan Dillon, a trademark lawyer at Smart & Biggar LLP, have observed a rise in these scams.
They add that these schemes now target not only registered trademark holders but also businesses using unregistered marks.
Cheng says fraudsters are growing bolder. They are now impersonating actual law firms, fabricating infringement claims, and falsely accusing lawyers of making costly mistakes.
She says these companies scrape publicly available trademark information and bypass legal counsel to contact clients directly.
“They write to your clients directly and say, ‘If you want to maintain this registration, you better pay me this fee.’”
She adds that fraudsters are sending more misleading letters and emails than before, making their schemes harder to detect.
“They’re sending these alarming letters to your client saying your lawyer dropped the ball… They even identify like a legitimate boutique law firm, and that firm is, of course, not the source at all,” she says.
Dillon notes that trademark authorities are aware of these scams.
“The Canadian Intellectual Property Office and the US Patent and Trademark Office both have web pages dedicated to these frauds,” she says.
Cheng and Dillon say that scammers' key tactic is creating a false sense of urgency, pressuring victims to act quickly before verifying the legitimacy of the demand.
Dillon says fraudsters warn business owners that their trademarks are at risk, demand immediate payment to prevent legal action, or falsely claim their legal counsel has made a mistake.
“They use dates taken from the trademarks database, whether the US or the Canadian, so it looks very plausible. They might say, ‘Your trademark is due to expire on March 11, 2025,’ when really it’s March 11, 2026, so you think you’re almost out of time and better pay this fee right away,” Dillon says.
Cheng says that threats of legal action often pressure victims into paying without question.
Beyond urgency, Dillon says fraudsters enhance their schemes with convincing documentation.
“They have very official-looking documentation and tend to target businesses that don’t have legal departments or immediate access to counsel,” she says.
“It’s easy to scare a small business owner into thinking they need to act immediately,” she adds.
The lawyers say fraudsters are also targeting businesses using unregistered trademarks, tricking them into paying unnecessary fees for protection they may not even need.
“Those say, ‘We’ve been approached by someone trying to register this trademark, but we know that you already use this trademark, so you better register it through us right away,’” Dillon says.
Cheng says that some track new trademark applications, preemptively registering related domain names to force businesses to repurchase them.
“Before you file that trademark application, you have to confirm that you filed all the domain names that you want because the second we file this, someone's going to snap them up if you don't have them,” she says.
Dillon adds that fraudsters can identify unregistered marks through internet searches and public databases, including the US Patent and Trademark Office.
Fraudsters also target US companies operating in Canada that have not registered their Canadian trademarks, using public records to deceive them into unnecessary payments.
“They could say, ‘Hey, in Canada, we've been approached by somebody who wants to register the exact same thing, and we noticed that you don't have it registered in Canada. You should probably do that right now,’” Dillon says.
Cheng says that with the rise of artificial intelligence, fraudsters have even more tools at their disposal. AI could enhance scams through voice cloning, deepfake content, and automated fraudulent correspondence.
“The ability to fraudulently shake you down has never been greater, with very little resources… AI is making fraud easier and more convincing than ever before, and with so much public data available, fraudsters have endless opportunities,” she warns.
Dillon says that email and mail fraud remain the most common, with law firms and trademark agencies in Canada and the US actively monitoring the issue. However, she warns that identifying scams remains difficult.
“Once they've been posted, it's pretty easy to identify them, but when they're not posted, it's hard to know whether they're real or not,” she says.
Dillon and Cheng say they proactively protect clients from trademark fraud. Dillon warns clients early, ensuring they only trust official correspondence.
“We always put warnings in our reporting emails when we file an application that you only pay attention to mail or email that comes from us and or from the Canadian Intellectual Property Office,” she says.
Cheng also advises clients to be cautious, particularly with payments.
“We are constantly telling our clients, do not pay anything associated with your trademark unless it's through us,” she says.
