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The Intellectual Property StrategistFeaturesIntellectual PropertyTrademarks

Quebec's Bill 96 and Trademarks: Product Packaging and Labelling

By Jean-Philippe Mikus, Eliane Ellbogen, and Isabelle Kalar
July 01, 2022

On May 24, 2022, the Quebec government adopted Bill 96, An Act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec (the Act), which modifies the Charter of the French Language (the Charter) in several ways. The modifications brought by the Act will have a far-reaching impact on how businesses use trademarks on product packaging, labelling, public signage and in commercial advertising. This article is Part One of a two-part series on Bill 96 and trademarks and covers the effects of Bill 96 as they relate to product packaging and labelling and how best to comply with these new provisions. Part Two, next issue, will focus on public signage and in commercial advertising.

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Product Packaging and Labelling Amendments

Prior to the adoption of Bill 96, a "recognized" trademark in a language other than French could be used in Quebec on a product package or label without being translated into French, provided that a French version of the trademark was not registered. See, s. 7(4) Regulation respecting the language of commerce and business, CQLR c C-11, r 9. The Act does not amend the Regulation.) The term "recognized trademark" had been interpreted to include both registered and applied for trademarks as well as common law trademarks. See, Quebec (AG) c 156158 Canada Inc. (Boulangerie Maxie's), 2015 QCCA 35.

With Bill 96, the scope of this exception is greatly reduced. See, s. 51.1 Charter of the French Language, CQLR c C-11. First, only registered trademarks will fall within the scope of the exception. For a trademark to appear on a product package or label without an accompanying – and equally prominent — French translation, it must be registered. It is important to keep in mind that this provision affects not only English trademarks, but any trademark in a language other than French. Consequently, a trademark that is composed of words in foreign languages may be equally affected by Bill 96. The Office québécois de la langue française (the OQLF) enforcement authority has even asserted in the past, albeit in a different context, that an invented trademark that includes a foreign language component may be "in a language other than French."

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