When the political writer Alexis De Tocqueville visited the Canadian province of Québec, he remarked, “Canada raises our curiosity. The French nation has been preserved there.” Nearly two hundred years later, the Québec National Assembly is keen to validate this claim. Since 1974, French has been the sole official language of Québec. In 1977, this was expanded under the French Charter, and products and advertisements were required to be transcribed either solely in French or with French as the most prominent translation.
With the passage of An Act Respecting French (Bill 96) in in June 2022, Québec National Assembly sought to further entrench the official language in the marketplace. Previously, the French Charter held an exemption for “recognized trademarks”, allowing common law marks to be used in languages other than French provided there was no French registration for the mark. After Bill 96 goes into force on June 1, 2025, the “recognized trademark” exception will only be extended to registered marks when used on products, public signage, and in commercial advertising. Common law marks will no longer be afforded protection under the exception. The relevant sections introduced to the French Charter by Bill 96 are provided below:
Section 51.1
Despite section 51, on a product, a registered trademark within the meaning of the Trademarks Act (Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter T-13) may be drawn up, even partially, only in a language other than French where no corresponding French version appears in the register kept according to the Act. However, if a generic term or a description of the product is included in the trademark, it must appear in French on the product or a medium permanently attached to the product.
Section 58.1
Despite section 58, on public signs and posters and in commercial advertising, a trademark may be drawn up, even partially, only in a language other than French, provided the trademark is registered within the meaning of the Trademarks Act (Revised Statutes of Canada, chapter T-13) and no corresponding French version appears in the register kept according to that Act.
Upon reading this, brand owners may be confused on the exact application of these passages. Fortunately, they are in good company, as INTA, the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC), and other parties have been working with the Québec government for further guidance on the exact implications of these sections. Unfortunately, the Québec regulatory bodies have not provided a firm answer as yet. As such, businesses are placed in the position of trying to anticipate what actions they need to take without any actual example to follow. Since the scope of this new law may require brand owners to further tailor packaging to local practice and consider region-specific trademark filings, this presents obvious issues.
In the absence of a bright-line application from the Québecois government, the practical impacts of Bill 96 remain foggy. In the coming months and years, international businesses are looking forward to further clarity as Québec solidifies Bill 96. However, the concern now is that this guidance may be too little, too late as the demands of retooling product lines and navigating an already backlogged Canadian trademark examination process implicate costs that some businesses may not be willing to tolerate.
Post written by Eligon Paralegal Tyler King
