The Lost Unfair Competition Law
110 Trademark Reporter 739 (2020)
64 Pages Posted: 15 Oct 2020 Last revised: 16 Oct 2020
Date Written: September 1, 2020
Abstract
The accepted metaphor that trademark law is a species of the genus of unfair competition law distorts both the actual history and the relationship between the two. Tracing the development of the law reveals a related sequence of significant events, some of which have been forgotten. This back-story suggests that a particularly innovative treaty incorporated by reference into the Lanham Act was meant to be the vehicle for unfair competition protection. As a result of this lost law, unfair competition law remains an enigma today.
Keywords: unfair competition, trademark law, unfair trade practices, legal history, international intellectual property law, treaty law
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