A trademark assignment is the process of assigning ownership rights of a trademark from one party to another. This assignment may be initiated through a gift, sale, or other types of transfer. On assignment, the assignee acquires the personal rights to use the trademark in commerce, and the earlier rights of the owner are ended. This transfer should be evidenced by a legal agreement and is usually registered with the concerned trademark office so that the change in ownership rights is legally identified.

Trademark assignments have important forms-

1. Complete Assignment: Under this form, all rights of the trademark are transferred to another party or assignee. The other party or assignee gains complete ownership and can avail exclusive rights to the trademark.
2. Partial Assignment: In this type, only some part of the rademark rights is passed to the other party.
3. Assignment with goodwill: In this type, the trademark is transferred, including the business or some part of the business in which this trademark is used. The goodwill related to the trademark is also transferred to the new owner, which means that he can access the trademark to advertise the business and benefit from the trademark’s prestige.
4. Assignment without goodwill: In this type, the trademark is transferred except any related business or goodwill. This is quite common in situations when the original trademark owner does not need this trademark anymore or when a trademark is sold independently from them business where it is used.

Some legal requirements should be fulfilled to execute a valid trademark assignment:

• Written Agreement: The trademark assignment should be provided in the form of a written agreement that declares the details of the transfer and the parties, and any further restrictions.
• Signature: Both parties should sign the assignment agreement to confirm shared acceptance.
• Recording: Recording the assignment with the relevant trademark office is recommended to notify the public of the change in ownership and guard against possible disputes.

There are various benefits to trademark assignments. Some of the important benefits are –

• Trademark assignments act as a source of revenue for a business that wants to license or sell their trademarks.
• It helps businesses enhance their brand identity and boost their market share.
• It also helps businesses protect their intellectual property rights and safeguard infringement by others.
• A trademark assignment allows a business to broaden its products and services to new markets and regions.

The following documents should be submitted to the registrar of trademarks, including the form TM-

• Id proofs of the assignor and assignee.
• NOC from the assignor.
• Trademark assignment agreement.
• Trademark certificate.

The process of assignment of the trademark in India are as follows:

• The trademark owner (assignor) transfers his/her rights in the trademark by executing a trademark assignment agreement with the assignee.
• Either the assignor and assignee or either of them may apply jointly for registration of the assignment by making an application of a trademark assignment in Form TM-P to the register of trademarks.
• The TM-P form should be submitted to the registrar of trademarks within six months of the assignment date. The application can be submitted after six months of assignment but with a different fee.
• The assignment should be notified in the time and manner prescribed by the trademark registrar.
• The registrar's direction and the advertisement copy are to be submitted to the office of the registrar of trademarks.
• When the registrar receives the trademark assignment application (form TM-P) and accompanying documents, the assignee will be registered as the owner of the trademark, and the assignment details will be recorded in the register.